Absolutely with California as a great model, with highest population, especially after the bogas recall election we had to pay for because of Republican BS and recount confirmed accuracy.
My husband and I are both retired so voting early in person is not a hardship but we're very satisfied that NM has the vote by mail system (which we used in 2020 during the height of the pandemic).
I'm in a fairly "red" area of CA but my county has the best VBM and tracking, plus easy drop off places if you don't want to mail your ballot. Wish everyone had access like this
I'm sure you meant agreed, as greed is the reason some states do gerrymandering to keep themselves in power because they wouldn't win otherwise, vote 💙 or it'll be our last.
It only works if you are not disqualified. In 2022 when I did not receive my mail-in ballot I checked and found out I had been disqualified. It was too late to receive a mail-in ballot after re-registering. (Nevada does have universal mail-in ballots sent to all registered voters.) I had to be carried into the polling facility, being still unable to walk from my illness.
I did later call the sec. of state to ask why I had been disqualified, The only answer was they reviewed their lists of registered voters and had removed several thousand but they couldn't tell me what criteria that had caused my removal. Or if there was even a standard of criteria.
Worst of all I asked why I hadn't been informed that I had been removed, but apparently it was my responsibility to insure my registration. Well I did take that responsibility and I did act to re-register immediately, but what about the other thousands who simply assumed they were eligible and showed up to vote and were denied.
Of course we need more than mail-in ballots--we need mandatory registration. The constitution gives states the responsibility of organizing their own elections. Any new voter right's bill by Congress must include the right for every citizen to become automatically included on the voting rolls and eligiblity of voting can only be limited by age or non-citizenship.
Mostly I agree, we should not need to"go vote'. But we need mandatory registration upon eligibility (Age or naturalization). Many other democracies automatically register voters. But ballots could also be brought to voters, both as a "reminder" and as an encouragement. That could be brought to people in hospitals, nursing homes or to the homeless. They could be brought to workplaces or school. People should be reminded fre
quently, that mail ballots should be returned and we should strive for the highest possible participation, not the lowest. America seems to place as many obstacles to insure lower turnout, or prevent voting against parties in power by redistricting and disqualification or restricting access by making people both need to register and to find time to vote.
I think high school seniors should be automatically registered as part of their graduation ceremonies. I like DMV registration, but as an immigrant advocate I have had a couple of residents who were registered, without realizing they had registered, and unfortunately the government uses that as a reason to ban them from ever becoming a US citizen although they never voted. I even had one registrars office tell the person that yes they could vote simply because they registered, so registrars must be educated. My mom would call all of her children and make sure they voted every election "even for dog catcher" as she would say.
Don't the supremes ever get tired of his BS? Aren't they annoyed by his rotten back-street lawyers making a mockery of our laws. Don't they have any shame?
I heard that the illegitimate court will rule in his favor in the Colorado case but rule in Jack Smith’s favor on the DC trial. Their attempt to look impartial.
Mango Muffin can still run off ballot, and remember he doesn't need to win, He just needs to come close, within 10% I'd estimate, to do what most dictators have done throughout history: Illegally and through subterfuge, violently continue his treasonous sedition.
I'm an old guy, living on my hard and well-earned Social Security checks. I give an automatic monthly donation to VoteRiders.org (and to Joe Biden). I'm about to increase my donation amounts. Every bit helps. Do what you can!
Go to your local coffee shop and make sure all the young folks working there and like seeing you everyday will vote.. i guess if you are living on SS Like many its no lattes for you, but plain coffee is still affordable and opportunities to interact with others there abound
I made it a point to take my kids with me behind the curtain to vote when they were little. When we moved to Colorado with mail-in ballots, we had family voting night every year. Even before they could vote, we talked about the issues together. I remember one year when my son felt very strongly about an issue. He had researched it and changed my mind.
CO has a great election/voting system including the “Blue Book” sent out in October. It outlines all the issues, the pros and cons, and what the cost to taxpayers will be.
Now we’re in NY which is so far behind CO in terms of voter information it’s astonishing.
We receive a voters pamphlet here in Washington state that gives all the issues with pro and con articles and all of the people running for office. It's a great help for voters. I love our mail in ballot system....it is very efficient.
Lucky you. We get nothing in our state. Still, I vote for only those with a D next to their name. It is tricky in the primaries and I have to do research to ascertain whom I will vote for. Also in general election, I have to research any propositions that are on the ballot. I wish it were e, but I recognize that it is my job as a citizen to do so.
I love the idea of a Blue Book! Heaven knows if we'll ever get vbm in NC, and I'm not sure I'd entirely trust the contents of literature put out by our current general assembly, but a source that could be used as a jumping off point would be wonderful.
That's great news. Don't accept apathy. When I talk to people, I won't tolerate a no answer regarding voting. "I don't do politics" is common. I say "Fine. Then politics will do you." Have a wonderful holiday.
Read the decision, that's not what happened. The DQ clause is open to "interpretation" which is why something definitive from SCOTUS is needed (but likely won't come).
I will do as you suggest, however, I'm afraid I just don't see how one can interpret that it does not apply to a President..and particularly the one in question..I have read Sec 3 of the 14th Amend. dozens of times, looked up the operative words, sought out synonyms over and over..I see only one way to see it..The same as Baude & Paulson, Luttig & Tribe..There is nothing to interpret. It is plain language..Don't take my word for it take this guy's..
Agree, Judge Wallace made a curtsey bow to the claim he was not an officer that she could not determine without higher court readings of the Constitution meaning.
Judge Luttig (and Tribe) immediately weighed in on the assertion by DJT's legal team of the dissembling of "Officer" and the inaccurate relation to the appointments clause.
Any other views to not being an Officer as defined in 14th A, section 3 is farcical and absurd (absurdity Doctrine: Manning, supra not 2, at 2420 n. (123) catalog opinions noted by textualists Justice Scalia and Easterbrook that rely on the absurdity doctrine.) e.g. City of Columbus vs. Ours Garage and Wrecker (2002),
- "A possibility so startling (..) the statute should not be interpreted to produce absurd results." In this case a Constitutional Amendment considering that the Presidency as NOT an Officer would be the absurd.
Yet, DJT did get one round of his absurdity claim, which is opposite to the doctrine as it contests that the absurd result is more correct than the plain reading vs. the text being accurate on its face, by the Judge in the lower court as a dodge for the appeals court by political concerns vs. textual plain language. The contortions DJT makes in legal filings would break most people's fiber.
It would be absurd to believe the title of Officer does not apply to the President, who is an officer in all forms of responsibility and gravity and consequences of the position. The full authority vested to be the Chief Officer of the executive branch by the Oath and consent of the electorate to act WITHIN the Constitutional powers gained. To think otherwise is absurd. He was the Head Executive Official of the Article II branch. DJT has always just thought it a Kingly position without question and above the law and to "be the law" as he chooses.
As with the Roe decision leaving the rules to states, this voting issue already resides with states to control the voting, not the fed.. why isnt that idea applied in this situation? States have to right to vet who is eligible it seems.
They have right to vet, but unlike state's requirements these eligibility requirements exist in the US Constitution. Just like age and native born are eligibility imperatives the 14th A, sect 3 is a qualification in reverse. To pass through this requirement you have to have NOT incited an insurrection or rebellion in a previous position in the government.
The states have to comply. The question was 1.) did he engage in an insurrection- yes, affirmed by court of law; and 2.) was he an officer of the US when he did it. Yes, affirmed on appeal about the lower court’s distorted hedge against the President being an Officer of the US Government. That cramped reading was overturned based on simplicity of the plain reading and machinations to say DJT was not an officer must fail. Judge Lutig gives an excellent legal read of the lower courts shyness to apply the 14th correctly.
I’ve heard so many arguments that this case just doesn’t feel right in the here and now. The application of old and outdated pieces of the Constitution that might lead to “unintended consequences” surely merits an equitable massage to make it appeal to fundamental sense of comfort to the disquieted, say the MAGA snowflakes. Look how strictly the 13th Amendment was applied!
Dear Joyce - I so enjoy your commentaries on the legal aspects of our democracy, especially concerning the whirlwind of legal woes orbiting Donald Trump. And while the American media spotlight, ever enthralled by the sensationalism of the moment, remains fixated on Trump's legal issues, a crucial and overlooked danger continues to unfold in the United States. The influence of Putin's strategies quietly attempts to reshape the trajectory of American politics. We are seeing this happening now! The shadow cast by Putin over the landscape of American democracy, and his influence and control over Trump grows larger and darker by the moment. We must stop Putin - but how? Read the book From Democracy to Democrazy, by Graham. It is designed to help the American public make sense of Putin's role by revealing, in detail, his carefully hidden plan for our country. Both Putin and Trump are consummate liars, but their web of lies cannot withstand the light of truth. Wishing you and your family a wonderful holiday season.
Thanks Joyce with both the news and more importantly the message. As important is our Democratic Party starting to back Biden and call out Trump every day, Not just one but the whole party. Momentum is important in getting out the vote.
Vote early, help organizations that get out the vote, drive someone or several someones to the polls, volunteer. Act like your life depends on it- because it does.
Thank you Joyce! Great analysis as usual. All I can say is that no side effect of a Trump loss will ever come close to what will happen if he wins. Hopefully, that fact will increase the election result differential.
Our county normally has a high turnout rate, even for off-year voting, but you can bet we'll hit 85-90% next November, and strongly Blue!
Also, although the appellate courts and SCOTUS are two-thumbs-downing tRump's divers -*cough-cough* - "immunity" appeals, the 14th Amendment §3 may well be a bridge too far. Don't believe a majority is at all ready to endorse the "self-executing" argument, but it's a good job that this business will get a hearing, for future considerations. I mean, it can't be ignored, it's in the Constitution already.
Yes it’s a difficult case, largely because it requires almost a presumption that Trump directed the insurrection. Yes, of course we all know he did, but where is a court’s determination that he did? Hopefully that’s coming but most likely not in time to keep him off the ballot.
Great post. Joyce. It is hard for me to understand those who don't vote. Being a political animal for 84 years (yes, since age 6), on my 21st birthday, I registered to vote (in Canada) The driving force for me to become an American was the right to vote.
Yet here, in California, where ballots are mailed to every registered voter with a prepaid envelope, and under separate cover a voters handbook with explanation of all propositions, statements from candidates for local offices; sent at least 30 days prior to the election and the State accepts all ballots postmarked election day; and we have adequate ballot boxes everywhere. we are super lucky if 55% of eligible voters vote. The hand books are even printed in their preferred language, which they select at registration.
We have motor voter [when I was an Eligibility Worker I used to help my clients fill them out] We can also register online. In my younger days I was an official volunteer registrar for Sacramento County, in those days (1960's early 70's) a registrar would go to their homes on request to register them. Do we need to include a pen with the ballot?
My own children ( (now deceased) and grandchildren (only one deceased) are registered and vote on pain of a lecture from Grandma. Even their friends have to vote.
Pa. Has turned a deep purpley-blue because we voted to retain mail-in voting. Getting people registered is the first step. Then having and sharing real information. Then getting people to the polls. I have room for four in my car. Do you?
If you’re near Philadelphia, go to www.indivisiblephiladelphia.com and join our activities. Register voters. Knock on doors. Write postcards. Join a texting party. Lots of ways to get infrequent voters to the polls. It will take all of us.
The indivisible near me has a weekly email letter with events and meetings, as well as all signups. It couldn't be much easier to be involved this way. It's a little harder for some to talk to people about how much their vote matters. But it's never mattered more!
Vote by mail needs to be national. It’s been vetted for decades by several states and proven to be safe and secure.
Vote in the privacy of your home. It’s not weather dependent; no work time loss; no child care issues; very ADA supportive, etc.
Absolutely with California as a great model, with highest population, especially after the bogas recall election we had to pay for because of Republican BS and recount confirmed accuracy.
VBM has been in WA for years, best thing since sliced bread!
This Washingtonian agrees 🗳📨📬
Me too!
I'm a Washingtonian living abroad. I can send a scan of my ballot by email, and track its arrival and counting on the elections website. So easy!
same here. Recently I forgot to sign the ballot and they caught it and let me resolve it.
me too! I've tried to point out to folks the incredible security steps it involves. Folks just go "ballot stuffing" at me.
Yes, I love our CA vote by mail and vote early systems!
Here in AZ, same
And Vermont too!
And in NM also!
My husband and I are both retired so voting early in person is not a hardship but we're very satisfied that NM has the vote by mail system (which we used in 2020 during the height of the pandemic).
I could not agree more.
I'm in a fairly "red" area of CA but my county has the best VBM and tracking, plus easy drop off places if you don't want to mail your ballot. Wish everyone had access like this
Oregon does this with great success. Greed, ought to be the national model and means of voting.
I'm sure you meant agreed, as greed is the reason some states do gerrymandering to keep themselves in power because they wouldn't win otherwise, vote 💙 or it'll be our last.
Yuppers, thanks for catching that!
I’ve voted by mail for over 20 years now - I love it! (And…..it does kind of negate all the “lazy” reasons for not voting!)….
It only works if you are not disqualified. In 2022 when I did not receive my mail-in ballot I checked and found out I had been disqualified. It was too late to receive a mail-in ballot after re-registering. (Nevada does have universal mail-in ballots sent to all registered voters.) I had to be carried into the polling facility, being still unable to walk from my illness.
I did later call the sec. of state to ask why I had been disqualified, The only answer was they reviewed their lists of registered voters and had removed several thousand but they couldn't tell me what criteria that had caused my removal. Or if there was even a standard of criteria.
Worst of all I asked why I hadn't been informed that I had been removed, but apparently it was my responsibility to insure my registration. Well I did take that responsibility and I did act to re-register immediately, but what about the other thousands who simply assumed they were eligible and showed up to vote and were denied.
Of course we need more than mail-in ballots--we need mandatory registration. The constitution gives states the responsibility of organizing their own elections. Any new voter right's bill by Congress must include the right for every citizen to become automatically included on the voting rolls and eligiblity of voting can only be limited by age or non-citizenship.
Only way they win... Sorry you had to deal with this BS and thanks for asking questions and making the extra effort to vote!
ty
P.S., I have heard that Orban removed a lot of people from the voting rolls in Hungary.
Texas as well. Same autocratic principle at work.
many places.
The big weakness with voting by mail is the Postmaster General.
The republicans lose when that happens, why they keep fighting it
We’ve done it in Colorado for years and it’s secure and so easy. I’ve gone through the training on the vote count and it’s impressive.
We should all vote by mail.
Mostly I agree, we should not need to"go vote'. But we need mandatory registration upon eligibility (Age or naturalization). Many other democracies automatically register voters. But ballots could also be brought to voters, both as a "reminder" and as an encouragement. That could be brought to people in hospitals, nursing homes or to the homeless. They could be brought to workplaces or school. People should be reminded fre
quently, that mail ballots should be returned and we should strive for the highest possible participation, not the lowest. America seems to place as many obstacles to insure lower turnout, or prevent voting against parties in power by redistricting and disqualification or restricting access by making people both need to register and to find time to vote.
I think high school seniors should be automatically registered as part of their graduation ceremonies. I like DMV registration, but as an immigrant advocate I have had a couple of residents who were registered, without realizing they had registered, and unfortunately the government uses that as a reason to ban them from ever becoming a US citizen although they never voted. I even had one registrars office tell the person that yes they could vote simply because they registered, so registrars must be educated. My mom would call all of her children and make sure they voted every election "even for dog catcher" as she would say.
Support your local League of Women Voters' program to register high school students to vote!
https://www.lwv.org/educating-voters/high-school-voter-registration
I vote by Internet (e-mail).
He should never be on the ballot ! Half of those in congress should be removed as well !
25 states are considering removing him. We know he’s taking it to the Supreme Court. I’m sure they will rule in his favor.
But I will rejoice in the ruling for as long as it lasts.
Don't the supremes ever get tired of his BS? Aren't they annoyed by his rotten back-street lawyers making a mockery of our laws. Don't they have any shame?
More importantly, don't they know that he plans to get rid of all of them???
Shame? I don’t think they know how to spell the word.
How much $ is going to be funneled to Alito and Thomas to get the result they want? Inquiring minds want to know...
I think they are already bought and paid for. It is Christmas time, there will be an extra present under their trees.
It’s a difficult case, one of first impression, I think. I’ll be surprised if SCOTUS upholds the decision.
I heard that the illegitimate court will rule in his favor in the Colorado case but rule in Jack Smith’s favor on the DC trial. Their attempt to look impartial.
Strongly agree.
Mango Muffin can still run off ballot, and remember he doesn't need to win, He just needs to come close, within 10% I'd estimate, to do what most dictators have done throughout history: Illegally and through subterfuge, violently continue his treasonous sedition.
I'm an old guy, living on my hard and well-earned Social Security checks. I give an automatic monthly donation to VoteRiders.org (and to Joe Biden). I'm about to increase my donation amounts. Every bit helps. Do what you can!
Voters of Tomorrow and Rise are good ones that are run by and target the youger voters that we desperatly need. They are on my monthlys too.
Go to your local coffee shop and make sure all the young folks working there and like seeing you everyday will vote.. i guess if you are living on SS Like many its no lattes for you, but plain coffee is still affordable and opportunities to interact with others there abound
Another good group for registering young voters — https://www.thecivicscenter.org/
Right on, Paul Brown!
Thank you.
It really does feel that we are living in the end times.
Thanks, Paul.
I made it a point to take my kids with me behind the curtain to vote when they were little. When we moved to Colorado with mail-in ballots, we had family voting night every year. Even before they could vote, we talked about the issues together. I remember one year when my son felt very strongly about an issue. He had researched it and changed my mind.
CO has a great election/voting system including the “Blue Book” sent out in October. It outlines all the issues, the pros and cons, and what the cost to taxpayers will be.
Now we’re in NY which is so far behind CO in terms of voter information it’s astonishing.
We receive a voters pamphlet here in Washington state that gives all the issues with pro and con articles and all of the people running for office. It's a great help for voters. I love our mail in ballot system....it is very efficient.
Same in Oregon! Hooray for our patriotic voters and our Secretary of State for maximizing opportunity for voting.
Lucky you. We get nothing in our state. Still, I vote for only those with a D next to their name. It is tricky in the primaries and I have to do research to ascertain whom I will vote for. Also in general election, I have to research any propositions that are on the ballot. I wish it were e, but I recognize that it is my job as a citizen to do so.
You are a prime example of the informed voter. Thank you for sharing!
We get a great book in CA, too!
Love the idea of a Blue Book which provides information at your fingertips before you vote! We New Yorkers need this!
I love the idea of a Blue Book! Heaven knows if we'll ever get vbm in NC, and I'm not sure I'd entirely trust the contents of literature put out by our current general assembly, but a source that could be used as a jumping off point would be wonderful.
Your post brings back memories of going behind the voting curtain with my dad. I remember its solemn swish and heavy grey.
That's great news. Don't accept apathy. When I talk to people, I won't tolerate a no answer regarding voting. "I don't do politics" is common. I say "Fine. Then politics will do you." Have a wonderful holiday.
Good one. I also like:
"If you don't deal with reality, then reality will deal with you."
So true.
LOVE that response!
I am thrilled beyond appropriate words with this Colorado news. Every state needs to put their big girl panties on and do the same.
Just vote early. No excuses.
A 4-3 decision..While I agree with this outcome, what is inexplicably disturbing about this is that 3 justices ruled against our Constitution..
Read the decision, that's not what happened. The DQ clause is open to "interpretation" which is why something definitive from SCOTUS is needed (but likely won't come).
I will do as you suggest, however, I'm afraid I just don't see how one can interpret that it does not apply to a President..and particularly the one in question..I have read Sec 3 of the 14th Amend. dozens of times, looked up the operative words, sought out synonyms over and over..I see only one way to see it..The same as Baude & Paulson, Luttig & Tribe..There is nothing to interpret. It is plain language..Don't take my word for it take this guy's..
https://youtu.be/-AUIjOHw9pY
Agree, Judge Wallace made a curtsey bow to the claim he was not an officer that she could not determine without higher court readings of the Constitution meaning.
Judge Luttig (and Tribe) immediately weighed in on the assertion by DJT's legal team of the dissembling of "Officer" and the inaccurate relation to the appointments clause.
Any other views to not being an Officer as defined in 14th A, section 3 is farcical and absurd (absurdity Doctrine: Manning, supra not 2, at 2420 n. (123) catalog opinions noted by textualists Justice Scalia and Easterbrook that rely on the absurdity doctrine.) e.g. City of Columbus vs. Ours Garage and Wrecker (2002),
- "A possibility so startling (..) the statute should not be interpreted to produce absurd results." In this case a Constitutional Amendment considering that the Presidency as NOT an Officer would be the absurd.
Yet, DJT did get one round of his absurdity claim, which is opposite to the doctrine as it contests that the absurd result is more correct than the plain reading vs. the text being accurate on its face, by the Judge in the lower court as a dodge for the appeals court by political concerns vs. textual plain language. The contortions DJT makes in legal filings would break most people's fiber.
It would be absurd to believe the title of Officer does not apply to the President, who is an officer in all forms of responsibility and gravity and consequences of the position. The full authority vested to be the Chief Officer of the executive branch by the Oath and consent of the electorate to act WITHIN the Constitutional powers gained. To think otherwise is absurd. He was the Head Executive Official of the Article II branch. DJT has always just thought it a Kingly position without question and above the law and to "be the law" as he chooses.
What i heard was that the 3 were not substantive disagreements with the principles of the issue. So not as bad as it seems.
The other states need to follow suit. If he's 14th amendment ineligible - it's same across 50 states.
Let's go.
As with the Roe decision leaving the rules to states, this voting issue already resides with states to control the voting, not the fed.. why isnt that idea applied in this situation? States have to right to vet who is eligible it seems.
They have right to vet, but unlike state's requirements these eligibility requirements exist in the US Constitution. Just like age and native born are eligibility imperatives the 14th A, sect 3 is a qualification in reverse. To pass through this requirement you have to have NOT incited an insurrection or rebellion in a previous position in the government.
The states have to comply. The question was 1.) did he engage in an insurrection- yes, affirmed by court of law; and 2.) was he an officer of the US when he did it. Yes, affirmed on appeal about the lower court’s distorted hedge against the President being an Officer of the US Government. That cramped reading was overturned based on simplicity of the plain reading and machinations to say DJT was not an officer must fail. Judge Lutig gives an excellent legal read of the lower courts shyness to apply the 14th correctly.
I’ve heard so many arguments that this case just doesn’t feel right in the here and now. The application of old and outdated pieces of the Constitution that might lead to “unintended consequences” surely merits an equitable massage to make it appeal to fundamental sense of comfort to the disquieted, say the MAGA snowflakes. Look how strictly the 13th Amendment was applied!
Thanks..is there a link to judge Ludig’s comments?
https://www.msnbc.com/morning-joe/watch/judge-luttig-yesterday-s-decision-was-a-historic-constitutional-decision-200628805719
Thanks
Dear Joyce - I so enjoy your commentaries on the legal aspects of our democracy, especially concerning the whirlwind of legal woes orbiting Donald Trump. And while the American media spotlight, ever enthralled by the sensationalism of the moment, remains fixated on Trump's legal issues, a crucial and overlooked danger continues to unfold in the United States. The influence of Putin's strategies quietly attempts to reshape the trajectory of American politics. We are seeing this happening now! The shadow cast by Putin over the landscape of American democracy, and his influence and control over Trump grows larger and darker by the moment. We must stop Putin - but how? Read the book From Democracy to Democrazy, by Graham. It is designed to help the American public make sense of Putin's role by revealing, in detail, his carefully hidden plan for our country. Both Putin and Trump are consummate liars, but their web of lies cannot withstand the light of truth. Wishing you and your family a wonderful holiday season.
Just put your book in my shopping cart! Thanks for the recommendation!
Thanks Joyce with both the news and more importantly the message. As important is our Democratic Party starting to back Biden and call out Trump every day, Not just one but the whole party. Momentum is important in getting out the vote.
Vote early, help organizations that get out the vote, drive someone or several someones to the polls, volunteer. Act like your life depends on it- because it does.
Thank you Joyce! Great analysis as usual. All I can say is that no side effect of a Trump loss will ever come close to what will happen if he wins. Hopefully, that fact will increase the election result differential.
Our county normally has a high turnout rate, even for off-year voting, but you can bet we'll hit 85-90% next November, and strongly Blue!
Also, although the appellate courts and SCOTUS are two-thumbs-downing tRump's divers -*cough-cough* - "immunity" appeals, the 14th Amendment §3 may well be a bridge too far. Don't believe a majority is at all ready to endorse the "self-executing" argument, but it's a good job that this business will get a hearing, for future considerations. I mean, it can't be ignored, it's in the Constitution already.
Yes it’s a difficult case, largely because it requires almost a presumption that Trump directed the insurrection. Yes, of course we all know he did, but where is a court’s determination that he did? Hopefully that’s coming but most likely not in time to keep him off the ballot.
Great post. Joyce. It is hard for me to understand those who don't vote. Being a political animal for 84 years (yes, since age 6), on my 21st birthday, I registered to vote (in Canada) The driving force for me to become an American was the right to vote.
Yet here, in California, where ballots are mailed to every registered voter with a prepaid envelope, and under separate cover a voters handbook with explanation of all propositions, statements from candidates for local offices; sent at least 30 days prior to the election and the State accepts all ballots postmarked election day; and we have adequate ballot boxes everywhere. we are super lucky if 55% of eligible voters vote. The hand books are even printed in their preferred language, which they select at registration.
We have motor voter [when I was an Eligibility Worker I used to help my clients fill them out] We can also register online. In my younger days I was an official volunteer registrar for Sacramento County, in those days (1960's early 70's) a registrar would go to their homes on request to register them. Do we need to include a pen with the ballot?
My own children ( (now deceased) and grandchildren (only one deceased) are registered and vote on pain of a lecture from Grandma. Even their friends have to vote.
You are a wonderful role model to your grandchildren!
Thanks Betsy, or a tyrant (:-)
Pa. Has turned a deep purpley-blue because we voted to retain mail-in voting. Getting people registered is the first step. Then having and sharing real information. Then getting people to the polls. I have room for four in my car. Do you?
If you’re near Philadelphia, go to www.indivisiblephiladelphia.com and join our activities. Register voters. Knock on doors. Write postcards. Join a texting party. Lots of ways to get infrequent voters to the polls. It will take all of us.
The indivisible near me has a weekly email letter with events and meetings, as well as all signups. It couldn't be much easier to be involved this way. It's a little harder for some to talk to people about how much their vote matters. But it's never mattered more!