Campaigns & Elections

‘It’s Time to Overhaul the System’: Why Socialists Are Taking Aim at City Councils

Across the country, members of the Democratic Socialists of America have been elected to city councils running on platforms that reject capitalism and promote working class interests.

  • By Emma Coleman

‘It’s Time to Overhaul the System’: Why Socialists Are Taking Aim at City Councils

Across the country, members of the Democratic Socialists of America have been elected to city councils running on platforms that reject capitalism and promote working class interests.

  • By Emma Coleman
Campaigns & Elections

‘It’s Time to Overhaul the System’: Why Socialists Are Taking Aim at City Councils

Across the country, members of the Democratic Socialists of America have been elected to city councils running on platforms that reject capitalism and promote working class interests.

  • By Emma Coleman

More States and Cities Getting Interested in Ranked Choice Voting

Proponents say ranked choice voting could lessen polarization and make third party options more viable.

  • By Emma Coleman

How the Iowa Caucus Disenfranchises Voters

Democrats want to make voting more inclusive. In Iowa, they’re struggling.

  • By Elaine Godfrey, The Atlantic

States Try to Stop Political Deepfake Videos

State lawmakers are increasingly focused on deceptively edited videos, a pervasive technology that advocates say has the potential to disrupt elections. But are bans constitutional?

  • By Kate Elizabeth Queram

Southern States Have Shuttered 1,200 Polling Places Since 2013

STATE AND LOCAL ROUNDUP | States brace for Trump clean-water-regulation rollback … Michigan teacher pay stagnates … Alaska’s summer of warning-bell warming.

  • By John Tomasic

Appeals Court Overturns State Restrictions on Political Robocalls

Montana’s attorney general is reviewing the decision to see if an appeal is possible, or if lawmakers will need to take action.

  • By Bill Lucia

For Voters, Does Climate…Actually Even Matter?

Bernie Sanders released a massive plan for a Green New Deal this week. What’s the point of all these climate plans?

  • By Robinson Meyer, The Atlantic

The First Drag Queen Elected to Local Office Is Making a Run for Congress

Maebe A. Girl, the self-described “larger-than-life” candidate, is challenging one of the current stars of the Democratic party.

  • By Emma Coleman

Georgia Can Use Current Voting System for 2019 Elections, Judge Rules

But the state will need to put a backup system in place for the 2020 presidential primaries in case new voting machines are not ready by March.

  • By Laura Maggi

Voter Access Matters in 2020, and These Lawmakers Know It

Republicans tightened laws in a few key states. Democrats, meanwhile, opened access.

  • By Matt Vasilogambros

Ready or Not, Blockchain-Based Mobile Voting Is Getting Closer

Some voters in Provo and other Utah County cities will be able to cast ballots on a blockchain-powered mobile app in a pilot program for the August election.

  • By Sarah Holder, CityLab

Recalling Local Officials Is An ‘Intense, Scrappy Challenge’

In Washington D.C., an attempt to recall a city council member shows how difficult it is to organize this kind of campaign at a local level.

  • By Emma Coleman

Featured eBooks

Issues in City and County Management
CIVIC TECH: Case Studies From Innovative Communities
Data Driven Ways to Improve Public Health

Colorado Governor Recall Effort Follows a Larger Trend

Angry conservatives are pushing for recall elections to yank Democrats out of office.

  • By Sophie Quinton

Protecting Election Systems Will Take Much More Federal Money, Report Says

The threat of foreign interference in U.S. elections remains, so the federal government must help state and local officials shore up defenses, according to a new report from the Brennan Center for Justice.

  • By Laura Maggi

Feds Don't Regulate Election Equipment, So States Are On Their Own

Election technology companies design voting machines. But are they secure?

  • By Matt Vasilogambros

Progress Stalls for Minor Parties to Get on State Ballots

‘It’s the worst year for hostility to minor parties and independent candidates since 1971.’

  • By Marsha Mercer

Supreme Court’s Gerrymander Decision Shifts Fight Back to States

Reformers are likely to focus on independent commissions and transparency efforts to overhaul partisan gerrymandering before maps are redrawn in 2021.

  • By Andrea Noble

Lawmakers Grapple with Improving Election Security While Respecting States’ Rights

Experts say paper ballots are the way to go, but pushed back against efforts to federalize elections.

  • By Andrea Noble

No African American Has Won Statewide Office in Mississippi in 129 Years—Here's Why

COMMENTARY | The structure of Mississippi elections may prevent minorities from winning offices.

  • By John A. Tures, The Conversation

Six States to Craft Election Security Plans Through National Academy

The National Governors Association-sponsored policy academy will help officials from Arizona, Hawaii, Idaho, Minnesota, Nevada and Virginia devise communications and response plans to deploy if their election systems come under attack.

  • By Andrea Noble

Washington, D.C. Could Allow People in Prison to Vote

One council member will propose that the nation’s capital become the first place to restore voting rights to people who are currently serving time in prison.

  • By Emma Coleman