Consensus Builds for Universal Voter Registration

By Project Vote . Posted November 19, 2008.

USA Today explains: "Besides lines, the biggest problems Tuesday had to do with voter-registration systems. Even with new electronic databases, states often dropped would-be voters from their rolls if their names or data didn't match driver's or Social Security records. That has led advocacy groups to push for universal registration, a system used by at least 24 other countries in which all eligible citizens are automatically able to vote and permanently kept on the rolls."( Election gives early-balloting initiatives a boost, Richard Wolf, November 7, 2008).

The Brennan Center for Justice says: "Today we have the opportunity for a major breakthrough for effective democracy. New technology and the implementation of new federal laws make it possible to vault over existing voter registration problems. The United States can move to a system of universal voter registration; a system where every eligible citizen is able to vote because the government has taken the steps to make it possible for them to be on the voter rolls, permanently." (Universal Voter Registration, Wendy R. Weiser, Michael Waldman, and Renee Paradis, October 31, 2008).

Rick Hasen, election law expert, writes at Slate: "The solution is to take the job of voter registration for federal elections out of the hands of third parties (and out of the hands of the counties and states) and give it to the federal government. Finally, universal voter registration is good for the country, not only because it will make it easier for those who wish to vote to do so, but because it should end controversy over ballot integrity that threatens to undermine the legitimacy of our election process." (Registering Doubt: If we can nationalize banks, why not our election process, October 27, 2008).

Common Cause finds: "Across the country, there were overblown charges against ACORN and other voter registration organizations regarding voter registration fraud. All of these incidents underscore the need to completely rethink how we do voter registration in this country, unique in that it places almost the entire burden on citizens to register to vote and make sure they stay registered throughout their lives." Voting in 2008: Lessons Learned, Tova Wang, November 10, 2008).

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