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For the many or the few?

Jenna Spinelle

August 01, 2022 |

When the People Decide |

Podcast |

Over 15 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Florida

In Florida, formerly incarcerated people were at the forefront of efforts to rally support for a ballot initiative to allow residents with certain felony convictions back into the voting booth. Amendment 4 was successfully passed, restoring voting rights for many formerly incarcerated Floridians, and research studying other ballot initiatives in the United States has shown that these direct referendums have given the majority of the country's population policies that they approve of.

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Group seeks to turn Arizona's primaries into nonpartisan elections

Caitlin Schmidt

July 30, 2022 |

Arizona Daily Star |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Washington

States such as Washington and California have nonpartisan "top-two" primaries, in which the top two vote getters move on to the general election regardless of their party affiliation. In Washington, voter turnout in primary elections has jumped from 18 percent in 2003, before the law went into effect, to nearly 55 percent in 2020.

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In California Cities, a New Frontier for Public Financing of Elections

Spenser Mestel

July 13, 2022 |

Bolts |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Seattle, Washington

To give less affluent political hopefuls a fighting chance in local races, Seattle's "democracy vouchers" program provides each resident with four $25 vouchers to donate to candidates of their choice. The initiative has nearly doubled the number of candidates running for city positions since 2015, and those using the vouchers are more likely than cash donors to be young and low-income, leading other cities, such as Oakland, Calif., to consider adopting similar programs.

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One Small Step for Democracy in a ‘Live Free or Die' Town

Dan Barry

July 10, 2022 |

The New York Times |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Croydon, New Hampshire

We Stand Up for Croydon Students formed as a backlash to severe school budget cuts that resulted from a lack of civic participation among residents. The nonpartisan group collected enough signatures to set a special meeting to overturn the budget and, to get at least 50% of the town’s residents to participate in order for a new vote to be binding, volunteers organized community members through door knocking, phone banks, and lawn signs.

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Hawaii's System Of Public Funding For Elections Doesn't Work

Chad Blair

July 10, 2022 |

Honolulu Civil Beat |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Seattle, Washington

Seattle’s Democracy Voucher is an effective, yet underutilized, way to publicly fund political campaigns. The city sends four $25 vouchers to each registered voter, who chooses which candidates they want to receive their vouchers, and the city transfers the funds directly to the campaigns. Since the program started the number of donors increased and many candidates who successfully defeated incumbents had benefited from the program.

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How Pennsylvania keeps its voter rolls clean and updated

Denise Clay-Murray

June 28, 2022 |

Votebeat |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania uses a comprehensive approach to maintain accurate voter roles. The state is a member of the Electronic Registration Information Center, which is a cross-state database that updates records of voters every 60 days based on interactions with the DMV. In addition, when a registered voter doesn’t vote in two consecutive federal election cycles, they are marked inactive and sent a request to confirm their residency. Those that do not respond with 30 days are removed from the rolls. All 67 counties are required to do annual maintenance of their voter rolls.

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A study in contrasts: Low-turnout runoffs vs. Alaska's top-four, all-mail primary

David Meyers

June 23, 2022 |

The Fulcrum |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Alaska

Alaska’s first primary election since it instituted a “top four” election system that places all candidates – regardless of party –on the same primary ballot, resulted in a less partisan campaign because people have to appeal to a more diverse group than their base in order to win. The all-mail primary also led to higher voter turnout, the highest since 2014.

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Residents 13 and up get another pick of city projects to receive funding

Ted Glanzer

June 20, 2022 |

Hartford Courant |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Hartford, Connecticut

Hartford residents 13 and older can decide how some public funds are spent. The Hartford Decides participatory budgeting initiative considers public input on small capital projects that cost between $10,000 and $25,000 and have a useful life of at least five years. City officials vet the projects for feasibility and those that pass are put on a ballot for the public to vote on. Previous winning projects include improvements to libraries, schools, and other publicly accessible resources. Residents can vote online or in-person and, depending on available funding, two to four projects can win approval.

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D.C. Residents Are Voting from Prison This Week

Kira Lerner

June 20, 2022 |

Bolts |

Text |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, District of Columbia

In July 2020, the District became one of three places in the country to grant people who are incarcerated the right to vote. Officials have conducted outreach to people in DC jails to make sure the are aware of their rights and the Board of Elections has provided staff with information and documents they need to ensure people can register to vote.

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Black women's political organizations making a difference

ReShonda Tate

June 16, 2022 |

Defender Network |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States

The Black Women’s PAC holds events and rallies that provide insight and knowledge for voters, candidates, and political insiders. They seek to increase the civic participation of Black women, including increasing the presence of Black women holding public office.

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