Voting Law Proposals and Voting Rights Efforts (2 Viewers)

[MT15]

This is, IMO, going to be a big topic in the coming year. Republicans have stated their aim to make voting more restrictive in just about every state where they have the means to do so. Democrats would like to pass the Voting Rights Bill named after John Lewis. I’m going to go look up the map of all the states which have pending legislation to restrict voting. Now that we have the election in the rear view, I thought we could try to make this a general discussion thread, where people who have concerns about voting abuses can post as well and we can discuss it from both sides. Please keep memes out of this thread and put them in the boards where we go to talk about the other side, lol.

 

[MT15]

Back to thread topic:

AL sent a letter saying Biden can’t be on their ballot if they wait until after the convention to fill out the paperwork, yet in 2020 they made an exception for the GOP. OH and maybe one other state are trying to pull the same shirt. Can’t win without cheating.

 

[Optimus Prime]

A pair of far-right operatives must pay $1.25m after they were found liable for a robocall scheme that targeted thousands of phone numbers to misinform Black voters and suppress voter turnout during the 2020 presidential election.

As part of a lawsuit settlement with civil rights groups and New York’s attorney general, conspiracy theorists Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkmam conceded to a $1m judgment that will climb to $1.25m if they fail to pay at least $105,000 by the end of the year.

The settlement announced on Tuesday follows a joint lawsuit from New York Attorney General Letitia James and the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation and individual plaintiffs alleging a voter suppression scheme that intentionally targeted Black voters with false threats surrounding mail-in voting.

Automatic calls – from the defendants’ so-called “civil rights organization” called “Project 1599” – reached roughly 5,500 New Yorkers in the summer of 2020 with false warnings that mail-in ballots send voters’ personal information to police and credit card companies and would be used to track vaccination records.

“Mail-in voting sounds great, but did you know that if you vote by mail, your personal information will be part of a public database that will be used by police departments to track down old warrants and be used by credit card companies to collect outstanding debts?” one message said.…..

Operatives behind ‘depraved’ robocalls must pay $1.25m for suppressing Black voters

Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman face more consequences for 2020 suppression scheme

www.independent.co.uk

 

[Optimus Prime]

I never have given any thought to what the percentage was but I was surprised by the 80%.

Curious why it’s so high
==========

Carly Koppes kept her pregnancy hidden from the public as long as she possibly could, fearing the potential harassment that could come from those who frequently attack the Republican elections clerk.

When Koppes, who runs elections in Weld county, Colorado, did media interviews, she asked the people behind the camera to position her so her growing belly wasn’t visible, fearing her harassers would see the images or videos and make comments about her future child. She “never in a million years” anticipated that she’d have to hide her pregnancy, she said.

Sure enough, once it was public, she received messages like, “I’m going to pray for your child because his mother’s a demon,” she said.


“I’m happy to report, he did not come out with horns, he came out looking more like a cherub angel,” she joked. “So thank you for the prayers, they clearly worked.”

Koppes is part of the 80% – the percentage of women who run elections in the US, one area of government that is consistently female-dominated. It’s also an area of government that, since 2020, has seen a persistent level of threats and harassment, largely from those who believe Donald Trump won the election that year.

Womenin elected positions, in general, report higher levels of threats and harassment than their male counterparts, and people of color experience higher levels than their white counterparts.

Anecdotally, women who run elections say they have encountered sexist insults, threats of sexual or domestic violence, attacks on their families and criticisms that they aren’t able to do their jobs.

While the individual harm of these behaviors is clear, there’s also a societal harm – they could run women out of their offices, affecting the pipeline for higher offices and threatening the functioning of democracy itself.

“The health of democracy is literally built on political discourse, where people, even those without power, are discussing even sensitive topics, and they can share their ideas and opinions and experiences,” said Sarah Sobieraj, a professor at Tufts University who has studied and written about abuse and harassment of public officials. “And when we lose those varied voices and perspectives, this shapes, literally, what we are able to know.”…….

Women run 80% of US elections – but are targets of misogyny-laced threats

Threats lean toward sexual or domestic violence, attacks on their families and criticisms that they can’t do their jobs

www.theguardian.com

 

[zztop]

Here’s a Clever Way to Uncover America’s Voting Deserts

Mathematicians are using topological abstractions to find places poorly served by polling stations.

www.wired.com

 

[MT15]

What is she talking about here?

 

[Bigdaddysaints]

What is she talking about here?

i know when i worked the polls, a watcher was not allowed to do anything like that. We did not have to answer any questions and was told if they asked questions to refer them to the commisoner. They were not allowed to touch anything and they were not allowed to give voters any information. Luckily, none ever came around our precinct.

 

[Optimus Prime]

Blackballed from the party he used to work for. Bound by a restraining order for sending a threatening and racist message to a Republican Party official. Fired from his North Carolina job after his old white supremacist views came to light. And accused last year of sexual battery.

But Huffman, a 40-year-old former GOP operative, has something no one disputes: A couple of provocative 2020 text messages from Andrew Iverson, the new executive director of the Wisconsin Republican Party.

Two days before the 2020 election on Nov. 3, Iverson told the people on then-President Donald Trump's campaign in Wisconsin "to continue to fan the flame and get the word out about Democrats trying to steal this election."

Then Iverson, at the time state head of Trump Victory, a joint operation of the Trump campaign and the Republican National Committee, said this: "Just be on standby in case there's any stunts we need to pull."

But one political stunt may have already been broached.

On Election Day 2020, two days earlier, Iverson sent two text messages to Huffman, who was then Trump Victory's state strategic initiative director, encouraging him to get a bunch of Trump supporters to fill Souls to the Polls, a Black get-out-the-vote organization, with requests to be taken to go vote.

"Can Mario (Herrera, head of Hispanic outreach for Trump Victory) help get some Trump supporters to participate in Souls to the Polls?" Iverson told Huffman at 9:45 a.m. on Nov. 3, 2020. "'Can't wait to go vote for President Trump!' Wesring (sic) MAGA hat or something."

"I'm excited about this. Wreak havoc," Iverson then told Huffman. "For the afternoon and they'll make it clear they're excited to vote for Trump?"

In a statement, Iverson said this week that the text messages were jokes and weren't supposed to be taken seriously.

In a recent interview, Huffman said he never took them that way. He said Iverson clearly was trying to overwhelm and discourage Souls to the Polls, a Milwaukee group with strong ties to Democrats, by forcing the group to spend valuable resources on Trump supporters, who may or may not have voted, to various polling locations in Milwaukee...........

'Wreak havoc': New GOP head urged staffer to inundate Black group with Trump calls in 2020

Andrew Iverson, now head of the state Republican Party, told a staffer to "wreak havoc" by having Trump supporters inundate a get-out-the-vote group.

www.jsonline.com

 

[Farb]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/04/01/democrats-voter-registration-minorities/

For decades, nonpartisan groups allied with the Democratic Party have run wide-ranging efforts aimed at increasing voter registration among people of color and young people — groups that tend to lean Democratic but have historically voted at lower rates than older and White people.

In recent years, however, there has been a marked shift among the roughly 1 in 5 citizens of voting age who are unregistered toward Republicans, raising fresh questions about how much boosting nonpartisan voter registration could help presumptive GOP nominee Donald Trump heading into November.

Aaron Strauss, an influential data scientist who helps direct progressive spending at the firm OpenLabs, sparked private disagreements over this issue in January, when he sent about a dozen major Democratic donors a confidential memo that challenged traditional nonpartisan registration.

“Indeed, if we were to blindly register nonvoters and get them on the rolls, we would be distinctly aiding Trump’s quest for a personal dictatorship,” Strauss argued in the memo, which was obtained by The Washington Post and cited recent polling that showed Trump’s strength among unregistered voters.

 

[Bigdaddysaints]

Not sure where to put this, but, the orginzations she donated a lot of money to here in Louisiana is sure to tick off the right in this state. A lot of things they disagree with..

Billionaire MacKenzie Scott donates millions to Louisiana nonprofits. Here's the list.​

• The Louisiana Center for Children's Rights
• The Institute of Women & Ethnic Studies
• The First 72+
• Disability Rights Louisiana
• Promise of Justice Initiative
• Baton Rouge Youth Coalition
• Operation Restoration

• 
  
  

  Scott began giving away her billions that she received as part of a divorce settlement with Bezos, in 2019. Since then, 46 Louisiana organizations have received significant chunks of change to bolster their work. The reported amount of money donated to these organizations totals over $184,000,000.
  Yield Giving has published a list of all recipients on their website.
  
  Here's a look at the Louisiana organizations that have benefitted and now much they have received.
  
  Statewide
  

  • Louisiana Center for Children's Rights: $1,000,000
  • Institute of Women & Ethnic Studies: $2,000,000
  • Disability Rights Louisiana: $2,000,000
  • Promise of Justice Initiative: $2,000,000
  • Voice of the Experienced (VOTE): $4,000,000
  • Measures for Justice: $15,000,000
  • Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast: $17,000,000
  • Urban League of Louisiana: $5,700,000
  • Hope Enterprise Corporation: $10,000,000
  • Goodwill Industries of Southeastern Louisiana: $10,000,000
  • Easterseals Louisiana: $5,000,000
    
    

  • New Orleans area​

    • Operation Restoration: $2,000,000
    • The First 72+: $1,000,000
    • EXCELth, Inc.: amount not yet disclosed for the benefit of the recipient
    • TrainingGrounds: amount not yet disclosed for the benefit of the recipient
    • Clover: $3,000,000
    • Southeast Louisiana Legal Services: $1,800,000
    • Brothers Empowered to Teach: amount not yet disclosed for the benefit of the recipient
    • Community Academies of New Orleans: amount not yet disclosed for the benefit of the recipient
    • FirstLine Schools: amount not yet disclosed for the benefit of the recipient
    • Collegiate Academies: amount not yet disclosed for the benefit of the recipient
    • InspireNOLA Charter Schools: amount not yet disclosed for the benefit of the recipient
    • New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity: $4,500,000
    • Junior Achievement of Greater New Orleans: amount not yet disclosed for the benefit of the recipient
    • Junebug Productions: $1,000,000
    • Youth Empowerment Project: $3,000,000
    • Rethink New Orleans: amount not yet disclosed for the benefit of the recipient
    • Ashé Cultural Arts Center: $1,000,000
    • Second Harvest Food Bank of Greater New Orleans and Acadiana: $25,000,000
    • United Way of Southeast Louisiana: $10,000,000
    • Dillard University: amount not yet disclosed for the benefit of the recipient
    • Xavier University of Louisiana: $20,000,000
  • 
    

  • Baton Rouge area​

    • Baton Rouge Youth Coalition: $2,000,000
    • Propel America 2023: amount not yet disclosed for the benefit of the recipient
    • EXCELth, Inc.: amount not yet disclosed for the benefit of the recipient
    • Southeast Louisiana Legal Services: $1,800,000
    • Collegiate Academies: amount not yet disclosed for the benefit of the recipient
    • Young Men's Christian Association of the Capital Area: $2,000,000
    • Capital Area United Way: $5,000,000
    • YWCA of Greater Baton Rouge: $2,000,000

  • Acadiana area​

    • Lafayette Habitat for Humanity: $2,500,000
    • Big Brothers Big Sisters of Acadiana: $500,000
    • Boys & Girls Clubs of Acadiana: $1,600,000
    • Second Harvest Food Bank of Greater New Orleans and Acadiana: $25,000,000
  • 
    

  • North Louisiana​

    • Boys & Girls Club of North Louisiana: amount not yet disclosed for the benefit of the recipient
    • Foodbank of Northeast Louisiana: $3,000,000
    • Food Bank of Northwest Louisiana: amount not yet disclosed for the benefit of the recipient

  • Central Louisiana​

    • The Rapides Foundation: $14,000,000
    • Food Bank of Central Louisiana: amount not yet disclosed for the benefit of the recipient

  • Southwest Louisiana​

    • Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southwest Louisiana: $1,100,000
    • United Way of Southwest Louisiana: $5,000,000

  • 
    
    
    

    Billionaire MacKenzie Scott donates millions to Louisiana nonprofits. Here's the list.

    The former wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has given $182,000,000 to Louisiana organizations so far, according to reports. Here's a look at where her money is going.

    www.nola.com

 

[MT15]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/04/01/democrats-voter-registration-minorities/

For decades, nonpartisan groups allied with the Democratic Party have run wide-ranging efforts aimed at increasing voter registration among people of color and young people — groups that tend to lean Democratic but have historically voted at lower rates than older and White people.

In recent years, however, there has been a marked shift among the roughly 1 in 5 citizens of voting age who are unregistered toward Republicans, raising fresh questions about how much boosting nonpartisan voter registration could help presumptive GOP nominee Donald Trump heading into November.

Aaron Strauss, an influential data scientist who helps direct progressive spending at the firm OpenLabs, sparked private disagreements over this issue in January, when he sent about a dozen major Democratic donors a confidential memo that challenged traditional nonpartisan registration.

“Indeed, if we were to blindly register nonvoters and get them on the rolls, we would be distinctly aiding Trump’s quest for a personal dictatorship,” Strauss argued in the memo, which was obtained by The Washington Post and cited recent polling that showed Trump’s strength among unregistered voters.

What do you think this shows?

 

[Bigdaddysaints]

What do you think this shows?

they are so much against pushing people to register to vote, its detrimental to themselves..lol

 

[MT15]

 

[MT15]

I love the statement - she is a person who should not use words. Some people should be restricted to drawing pictures and using emojis, lol.

 

[MT15]

 

[DaveXA]

Literally cultish behavior.

 

[coldseat]

He wants to be VP so he has to play stupid and extreme MAGA publicly for Trump. To steal a line for "Shogun", he truly is a "vassal".

 

[MT15]

Crystal Mason, sentenced to five years in prison for attempting to vote while ineligible. It was clearly an error. She thought she was eligible, did a provisional ballot with the help of a poll worker, and once it was reviewed it was determined she was ineligible and her vote wasn’t counted. For this, she was prosecuted and sentenced to five years in prison. Her case was overturned on appeal, thank goodness. Well, now the local prosecutor has decided to refile the charges against her, for some reason.

 

[DaveXA]

Crystal Mason, sentenced to five years in prison for attempting to vote while ineligible. It was clearly an error. She thought she was eligible, did a provisional ballot with the help of a poll worker, and once it was reviewed it was determined she was ineligible and her vote wasn’t counted. For this, she was prosecuted and sentenced to five years in prison. Her case was overturned on appeal, thank goodness. Well, now the local prosecutor has decided to refile the charges against her, for some reason.

I'm not a violent man, but damn, sometimes I want to be.