We periodically receive newsletters from a wide variety of government reform news sources. These focus on only the major events within their respective areas of expertise. Here is a selection from a recent email newsletter:
From Common Dreams
http://bit.ly/1J047F
Bad Ballot Design Results in Staggering Numbers of Lost Votes
Thousands of Voters Disenfranchised in Recent Elections, Particularly Elderly, Low-Income & New Voters
Brennan Center Study Shows 13 Ballot Problems that Bedevil Elections Across the Country –
Voting Experts Offer Guidelines For Improved Ballot Design in time for ‘08 Election
NEW YORK - July 21 - Today voting technology experts at the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law released an extensive analysis of election ballots from across the country that shows that hundreds of thousands of voters were disenfranchised in recent elections as a result of badly designed ballots and confusing voting instructions.
Better Ballots, a product of the Center's national Task Force of design and usability experts and election officials, cites 13 frequent problems that continue to plague elections even after the infamous "butterfly ballot" in Florida's Palm Beach which resulted in 30,000 lost votes in the 2000 election.
The report recommends specific guidelines for county, state and federal election officials that will help avoid further voting blunders in 2008—and beyond.
Significantly, the report shows that ballot design problems disenfranchise disproportionate numbers of elderly, low-income and new voters.
"Design flaws resulted in hundreds of thousands of lost votes in recent elections," said Lawrence Norden, Counsel at the Brennan Center for Justice, "and the same error-causing designs still plague ballots across the country." [...]
.
---
> All Things Reform Mobile: allthingsreform.mofuse.mobi
> Capitol Switchboard: 202-224-3121 (not toll-free)
> US House/ US Senate Mobile: bit.ly/members
> Contact your representative tips: bit.ly/dear
---
.
