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Voting & Elections 12.10.2020

Associated Press: Few reports of voter intimidation or harassment in Maryland

Common Cause Maryland, a nonpartisan fair-elections advocate, trained and dispatched more than 1,000 volunteers to polling places in 22 counties. Volunteers were asked to report any sightings of voter intimidation or harassment through a group communication app at the end of their shifts. A spokeswoman for the organization said no incidents were reported.

Voting & Elections 11.25.2020

Inside Sources (Op-Ed): We Are Thankful for Our (Imperfect) Democracy

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.

Media & Democracy 11.17.2020

ABC News: 'Free speech' social media platform Parler is a hit among Trump supporters, but experts say it won't last

Similarly, Jesse Littlewood, vice president of campaigns at Common Cause, a nonpartisan watchdog group, told ABC News that some of Facebook's actions have been inefficient. "I would give them a mixed grade," said Littlewood. "On the one hand, they've been quick on some issues, but I still think they step in after a post has been circulating on the web for a while when damage has already been done and there's already a huge amount of influence."

Voting & Elections 11.3.2020

The Fulcrum (Op-Ed): This closing argument unites advocates on the left and businesses on the right

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.

Voting & Elections 10.25.2020

USA Today: Native Americans battle COVID-19 and other voting obstacles as Election Day nears

In New Mexico, Amber Carillo is helping members of the state's various tribes get information on the best way to register ahead of the Oct. 31 deadline. A member of the Laguna Pueblo tribe with relatives in the Acoma Pueblo, Carillo is particularly distressed whenever she gets word of another elder who has died from complications of COVID-19. “These are people that carry our cultural wisdom and language,” says Carillo, a Native American voting rights organizer with the activist group Common Cause New Mexico. “For us, when they die, it’s like the Library of Congress burning down.”

Voting & Elections 10.23.2020

BuzzFeed: This Is How Thousands Of Americans Are Preparing To Take On Trump If He Refuses To Leave Office

The groups are also planning for Election Day itself. The nonpartisan grassroots group Common Cause is appointing “election protection volunteers,” which it describes as “voters’ first line of defense against restrictive election laws, coronavirus-related voting disruptions, or anything else that could silence their voices.” Sylvia Albert, director of voting and elections for Common Cause, told BuzzFeed News that the volunteers will monitor the polls from outside voting stations while others watch for online disinformation and field calls to a hotline set up to take reports of voting problems, which could be anything from a lack of wheelchair access to illegal campaigning inside polling stations to explicit voter intimidation. In 2016 and 2018, the group had about 6,500 volunteers; this year, the number went up exponentially to more than 36,000. Albert said the thousands of unarmed volunteers outside polling stations will be trained to handle situations in which they face intimidation or violence, although she believes that anything of the sort is unlikely to happen.

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