Still Broken

[kster]

Published: March 17, 2009

In last year’s presidential election, as many as three million registered voters were not allowed to cast ballots and millions more chose not to because of extremely long lines and other frustrating obstacles. Ever since the 2000 election in Florida, the serious flaws in the voting system have been abundantly clear. More than eight years later, Congress must finally deliver on its promise of electoral reform.

Snip...Senator Charles Schumer, a Democrat of New York, is the new chairman of the Rules Committee, which oversees elections, and last week’s hearing is an encouraging sign that he intends to push for new laws.

The most important change Congress can make is to require universal voter registration. That would put the burden on states to register eligible voters — identifying them from other government lists such as tax and motor vehicle databases — rather than forcing prospective voters to navigate the obstacle-ridden path to the voting rolls. States should also be required to make registration permanent so voters are not purged from the rolls because of a move to a new address or a name change.


Snip...President Obama championed election reform when he was in the Senate, and Democrats, who have been far more committed to the cause than Republicans, now have healthy margins in both houses of Congress. Supporters of a more fair, efficient and inclusive system of voting should not let this moment slip away. The millions of registered voters who are being turned away deserve a lot better.





http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/18/opinion/18wed1.html?_r=2&adxnnl=1&ref=opinion&adxnnlx=1237437045-Qs8xO+asCrYfMIP6RTlZkQ



ONE MORE TIME...

"Senator Charles Schumer, a Democrat of New York, is the new chairman of the Rules Committee, which oversees elections, and last week’s hearing is an encouraging sign that he intends to push for new laws".

And... President Obama championed election reform.


Stop the bullshit already.

Hand Count the Godamn Paper Ballotts at the Precinct, a ten year old child would know that HCPB is the best way to count ballots, for christ sake.

The Election Reform Community at the DU should know this.

Hand Count E'm if You Got E'm.

Peace out.


:)