States Work on Proposals to Make Voting Easier
    By Richard Wolf
    USA Today

    Monday 26 February 2007

    Washington - Proposals designed to make voting easier and ballots more secure are beginning to advance in several states.

    The proposals range from allowing voters to register until Election Day to expanding the use of absentee ballots and early in-person voting. Several states and Congress also are promoting paper trails for electronic voting machines.

    The trend follows several years in which states passed tighter restrictions, such as requiring photo identification and proof of citizenship. Opponents of those restrictions, some of which were blocked by court action, are behind the push to bring more voters to the polls.

    "There will be some legislatures that will be more receptive to those ideas," says Doug Chapin of Electionline.org, a non-partisan news and research organization.

    The trend toward making it easier to register and vote could help Democrats in 2008, particularly in battleground states that will decide who wins the White House. Minorities and the poor would benefit the most, and they tend to vote for Democrats, says Kimball Brace of Election Data Services, a political consulting firm.

    Democrats won six more governor's offices and 10 more state legislative chambers in November. They hold 28 governor's offices and control 23 legislatures, compared with 15 legislatures run by Republicans. Power in the others is shared. Action in the states includes:

• Iowa. Would-be voters could register on Election Day under a bill pending before the Senate State Government Committee. Seven states have same-day registration laws. Democrats took over the state House of Representatives and Senate in November. "I think the Legislature has the votes to do it," new Democratic Secretary of State Michael Mauro says.
  
  
• Maryland. The House and Senate have approved putting a constitutional amendment before voters in 2008 that would make Maryland the 16th state to let voters cast ballots in person before Election Day. Differences between the bills remain to be worked out.
  
  
• Minnesota. A proposal to automatically register voters when they get driver's licenses is set to begin moving through the Legislature this week. Democrats won the House in November, giving them full control of the Legislature. "Citizens are looking for ways to have more accessibility," new Democratic Secretary of State Mark Ritchie says.
  
  
• Florida. New Republican Gov. Charlie Crist wants printers added to electronic voting machines so voters can check ballots. The paper trail, under consideration in many states and Congress, is a response to recent problems at the polls, including a disputed congressional election in Florida last year.

    Several states, including Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho and Indiana, are beginning to act on legislation paving the way for more voting by mail. Oregon and most counties in Washington vote by mail.

    In Congress, Rep. Rush Holt, D-N.J., wants paper trails on electronic voting machines to verify that all ballots are counted.

    Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., wants to crack down on campaign fliers and phone calls intended to mislead voters.

    Because Democrats control the House and Senate, those bills have a better chance of moving this year.