Register Now for Nonprofits and Election Protection

There's still time to register for Thursday's webinar:

Nonprofits and Election Protection
Thursday July 26th, 2:00-3:00pm Eastern

Your nonprofit can help ensure that your clients, constituents, and community members have the information and resources they need to successfully cast a ballot this year. We'll discuss tools like the 866-OUR-VOTE hotline and a new mobile phone app from the Lawyers' Committee. Learn how your nonprofit can direct voters to these and other resources for comprehensive voter information and advice on making sure their vote is counted. Other topics will include voter education and empowerment in this year's changing election law landscape, and how to become a poll worker or poll monitor.

Featured Presenter: As manager of legal mobilization, Eric Marshall is the chief organizer for the Lawyers' Committee and is responsible for creating and managing the infrastructure necessary to direct large scale pro bono resources to address modern civil rights issues.

Florida Election Law Update

This time last year we reported on a new election law in Florida that drastically restricted third-party voter registration efforts. The 2011 law required that completed registration forms be submitted within 48 hours (groups previously had 10 days) and imposed strict fines for each late registration form. This requirement severely hampered the ability of nonprofits to conduct voter outreach, and even forced the League of Women Voters to halt their registration efforts in the state.

But yesterday, a federal judge granted a preliminary injunction blocking certain provisions of the law. Judge Hinkle blocked the 48-hour return requirement, calling the deadline "harsh and impractical". The injunction also blocked a provision that would open up volunteers to possible felony charges for registering ineligible voters (even if unknowingly). He noted that "If the goal is to discourage voter registration drives and thus also to make it harder for new voters to register, this may work."

The timing of the injunction is important because "when a plaintiff loses an opportunity to register a voter, the opportunity is gone forever." Hopefully this ruling will once again allow Florida's 501(c)(3) nonprofits to safely register their community members ahead of the 2012 election. RSVP for our June 14th webinar for more on nonprofit voter registration.

While much of the law remains intact (including the shortened early voting period), it is not clear yet if the state will appeal. Meanwhile, the Department of Justice is still conducting a separate federal lawsuit challenging the law under the Voting Rights Act.

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Ohio Election Law Suspended

A controversial Ohio election law (HB 194) set to take effect on Friday has been suspended, pending the outcome of a November 2012 referendum.

If implemented, the law would prohibit counties from mailing out unsolicited absentee ballot applications, end the "golden week" when people can register to vote and cast a ballot on the same day, and reduce the number of early voting days.

Opponents of HB 194 gathered 318,460 petition signatures in support of a referendum to overturn the law. 231,147 of the signatures must be verified in order for the law to remain suspended and for the issue to be placed before voters in 2012. Secretary of State Jon Husted said the verification process will not be completed before this fall's election.

In other good news, as the law has been suspended, early voting for the November 8 election begins today. Happy Election Day Buckeyes!

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Troublesome Trend in Florida

Earlier this month Nonprofit VOTE's partner, Rx Democracy! warned of the negative impact of Florida's proposed election legislation. Despite opposition from numerous groups, Governor Rick Scott signed HB 1355/S 2086 into law.

Florida in recent years had made great improvements to its election law that bolstered voter participation and turnout by making it easier for voters to cast their ballot. Unfortunately, provisions of the latest law repeal and reduce a number of these advances.

One of the most troubling changes is the new regulations on third-party voter registration which hamper the ability of nonprofits to conduct voter outreach. The law requires an organization to register with the state and provide the names of its officers and registered agent, as well as the name and address of every person who will be registering voters. The organization must also account for every voter registration form it receives from the supervisor of elections, whether completed or not. While groups used to have 10 days to return completed applications, they now have just 48 hours. Failure to do so results in a $50 late fee per form.

This provision is a major deterrent for nonprofits who would otherwise be able to use their relationships with clients and the community to register and engage eligible voters.

Additionally, the new law reduces the number of early in-person voting days from 14 to 8, severely impacting the low-income and younger populations--often served by nonprofit organizations--who benefit from the increased flexibility.

The League of Women Voters has come out strongly against the law and deemed it "an assault on voters" that "will make it harder for eligible Floridians to be engaged and active in their government." They also announced that they will no longer register voters in Florida because of the financial risk for volunteers.

The Department of Justice has already been asked to review the bill under the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and lawsuits from various groups have been filed.

Unfortunately, similar laws that would mandate voter ID, eliminate Election Day Registration, and limit voters' options are being considered (and passed) across the country. While proponents of such legislation argue that it is necessary to protect against voter fraud, Florida Secretary of State Kurt Browning was forced to "acknowledge that there is little voter fraud in the state,"--a statement that rings true across the nation.

The new Florida law is part of a worrisome and often expensive trend that is adversely affecting low-income, minority, and mobile populations--the individuals most likely to be served by nonprofits. We should be focusing on how to encourage full participation among eligible voters, not finding ways to limit where, when, how, and who can vote.

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Enforcing the Motor-Voter Law

The 1993 National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) was designed to increase participation in federal elections. As a provision, state motor vehicle offices began offering clients the opportunity to register to vote, and the law became widely known as the motor-voter law.

However, the law also requires public assistance offices to proactively register voters. Although many potential voters can be reached through DMV offices, agencies that administer food stamps, welfare, Medicaid, disability assistance and child health programs are able to target historically underrepresented populations, such as low-income individuals, people with disabilities, minority populations, and new military recruits. Unfortunately, enforcement among public assistance offices (until recently) has been lax.

That began to change last year with the settlement of a 2006 lawsuit--backed by voting rights groups--aimed at bringing Ohio into compliance with the NVRA.

The result of the case has been overwhelming: in the first six months of 2010, more than 100,000 low-income Ohio residents applied to register to vote at public assistance offices. That number (17,000 applications per month) is almost a ten-fold increase in the number of registration applications public assistance offices collected before the lawsuit (1,775 per month).

A similar lawsuit against Missouri was settled in July 2008 and since then, nearly 250,000 voter applications have been submitted through public assistance agencies in the state over the past two years.

On the national level, the Justice Department will also begin enforcing the public assistance section of the law. In April, the Justice Department sent states a set of guidelines, marking the first time in 15 years that the Justice Department has explained what kinds of offices are covered and what procedures are to be used.

This national push will hopefully register hundreds of thousands of additional, hard to reach voters; voting rights groups estimate that 2-3 million low-income Americans could be registered each year if all states complied with the NVRA.

Read more about the Ohio lawsuit here.

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