Election Integrity

Today the Election Assistance Commission (EAC) unanimously adopted the Voluntary Voting System Guidelines (VVSG) 2.0. Voluntary Voting System Guidelines (VVSG) are a set of specifications and requirements against which voting systems can be tested to determine if the systems meet required standards. The standards govern security of the voting systems, functionality and accessibility. The Help America Vote Act mandates that the EAC develop and maintain these requirements. While many states require voting systems to conform to these standards, not all states mandate that compliance.

As Democrats take power in Washington, if only tenuously, many democracy reform groups see a potential path toward making the American political system work better. In this installment, Karen Hobert Flynn, president of Common Cause, answers our questions about 2020 accomplishments and plans for the year ahead. Her organization has long been on the front lines of advocating for democracy reform. Hobert Flynn's responses have been edited for clarity and length.

Our democracy has endured wars, pandemics, natural disasters and now a lawless president. And despite that, next year will likely bring more unexpected challenges that we’ll confront as a nation. We nonetheless must be thankful for what we have, as imperfect as our system is. Change has often been cyclical, and following the scandals of the Trump administration, we may soon have a once-in-a-generation opportunity. If one thing is clear, it’s that we’re on the doorstep of passing a comprehensive reform package to put “we the people” back in charge of our democracy.

As business leaders learned in the aftermath of George Floyd's murder, keeping a low profile during periods of social and political controversy is not an option in today's fast-moving, information-hungry environment. Standing together, business and civil society can send a strong message that we won't tolerate any false claims about our elections or any attempt to manipulate results and overturn the will of voters. It's inspiring to see tens of millions of Americans sending in their mail ballots, standing in line to vote and taking active steps to participate in our democracy. We owe them a free and fair election, with every vote counted and all results respected. That's our mission in the coming days. The more people, organizations and businesses who join us, the greater our voice will be — not only on Election Day but in the crucial days to follow.

Common Cause manages grassroots voter protection field programs for the Election Protection coalition mentioned above. It works with organizations in all 50 states to identify election reforms at all levels of government, including expanding vote-by-mail and ensuring safe in-person voting with strict public health and social distancing guidelines. The organization has recruited more than 35,000 volunteers during the 2020 election through its Protect the Vote program (four times more than they saw during the 2016 election), according to its national media strategist David Vance. Common Cause also has an online tool to help people quickly find their representatives, how to contact them, bills they’ve introduced, committees they’ve served on and political contributions they’ve received to ensure you have all the information needed to vote.

Today, Common Cause and the Arab American Institute sent a joint letter to the Commission on Presidential Debates (“CPD”) calling for mechanisms in future debates designed to combat the spread of election disinformation and promote trust in our democratic process.