Voting News for Feb 9th 2011

Posted: 08 Feb 2011 05:49 PM PST

CA: Secretary of State Debra Bowen eyeing Harman's congressional seat - Capitol Alert

Secretary of State Debra Bowen is considering running for the congressional seat expected to be vacated by Democratic Rep. Jane Harman. "She is very, very seriously considering running for Congress," Bowen campaign consultant Steve Barkan said. "It's brand new news, and so she needs to take all factors into consideration." News broke today that Harman, 65, will leave office to take a job as president of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, setting the stage for a special election in the 36th Congressional District. Bowen hails from Marina Del Rey, which is part of the district, and represented the area in the state Assembly and Senate from 1992 to 2006. She will be termed out of her job as the state elections chief in 2014. Read More

CA-36: Bowen In, Winograd Wants to Speak to Her | FDL News Desk

California Democratic Party Chair John Burton sent a courtesy letter to delegates of the party letting them know that Jane Harman has resigned from Congress, and he broke some news in the process: As of the sending of this email, the only candidate that has officially informed the California Democratic Party that they are running in the 36th congressional district is Debra Bowen. Bowen has been our Secretary of State since 2007 and she is a former State Senator and State Assemblymember from the area.
At the time, Bowen hadn’t officially announced or made any statement on her candidacy other than saying she was thinking about it. But last night an Act Blue page went live. Robert Cruickshank reflects the excitement of many in the grassroots at this prospect. Read More

DE: Dewey Beach Eyeing Electronic Voter Registration - WBOC-TV 16

Dewey Beach is considering a plan to convert its voter registration system from paper records to electronic files. Mayor Diane Hanson points out that the town is small and lacks some efficiencies that larger cities have. Read More

IN: Vote center bill gets final approval | Journal and Courier

Senate Bill 32 cleared the floor of the House of Representatives on Monday and now heads to Gov. Mitch Daniels. The vote was 68-28. Barring any last-minute hiccups in the governor's office, the new law will give every Indiana county the option to use centralized polling places instead of the traditional precinct voting system. Daniels had indicated he'll support the legislation. Read More

IN: Bill to consolidate Indiana voting sites moves to governor | The Courier-Journal

All counties could centralize their voting operations into fewer locations to save money and reduce the number of volunteers needed on Election Day under a bill the House passed and sent to Gov. Mitch Daniels on Monday.Senate Bill 32 requires a unanimous vote by the three-member Board of Elections to use so-called vote centers, rather than requiring Hoosiers to cast ballots at precinct level locations. It passed 68-28. Read More

IA: Straight-party voting should be illegal in Iowa, Republican senator says | Des Moines Register Staff Blogs

Iowans should not be allowed to vote a straight-party ticket, a Republican state senator believes. Sen. Mark Chelgren, R-Ottumwa, filed a bill this morning that would eliminate the option of voting by marking one place on a ballot to select all candidates of a single political party. “Straight-party voting is a lazy way of voting,” Chelgren said in an interview. “Voters should be responsible for educating themselves on who the candidates are and not just which party they’re with.” Read More

MN: Legislature takes up voter ID bill | mndaily.com

Two Minnesota representatives have proposed what 26 other states already require — a valid photo ID to vote. The bills, spurred by past election issues, could mean serious changes for University of Minnesota students. Rep. Mike Benson, R- Rochester, proposed a bill that would require non-expiring voter ID cards for residents who do not have a valid state driver’s license at election time. For students who are not from Minnesota, this would mean more work and a small fee to cast their vote. Out-of-state students who have registered to vote in Minnesota or changed their address but didn’t get a new drivers license would have to get an ID that is compliant with the bill, Benson said. Read More

MO: Jackson County Election board sends residents to wrong polling place

A mix-up at the Jackson County Election Board had some Lee’s Summit residents going to the wrong polling places yesterday. Election board officials are investigating what exactly caused their computer system to send out incorrect data about where residents should vote, said Bob Nichols, democrat director. Approximately 1,200 residents in the Winterset subdivision, Hazel Grove Elementary area and Lake Lotawana area may have been sent to incorrect polling locations. Read More

SD: Senate won’t shorten early voting window | The Daily Republic

State legislators are struggling over the question of when early voting should be allowed to start in South Dakota. Current law requires the ballots to be in the county auditor’s possession no later than 45 days prior to the election. Early voting can start as soon as the auditor allows after getting the ballots. Consequently, the start can vary county to county. Now some lawmakers want to set definite dates. The House voted 69-0 last week for legislation that would set the starting date as no earlier and no later than 46 days prior to the primary or general election. It also would require ballots to be printed and in the county auditor’s possession no later than 48 days prior to the election. Read More

TX: Controversy over former Dallas County Elections Administrator Bruce Sherbet’s resignation lingers | The Dallas Morning News

The controversy over what’s been described as the forced resignation of popular Dallas County Elections Administrator Bruce Sherbet is not going to end soon. County Commissioner Maurine Dickey is expected to introduce a proposal Tuesday to hire Sherbet as a consultant, presumably to oversee county elections. The drama will play out at the Commissioners Court meeting in front of a crowd of spectators prepared to show their support for Sherbet. Social-media sites have been used for the past several days to plan strategy for the meeting and its aftermath. Read More

International

Nigeria: Multiple voter registration: NSCDC arrests 1 in Ondo

The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Ondo State command (NSCDC) has arrested one person for allegedly involving in multiple registrations during the voter registration. The suspect, Akintola Olafisoye, was arrested at one of the registration centres in Alade-Idanre, Idanre Local Government area of the state by men of the command. According to the state commandant of NSCDC, Hilary Kelechi, the suspect was arrested with three voter cards while he was about to register the fourth time. He said the suspect, who lives at Oke-Ijebu street, Idanre, had registered with different names but with his pictures on the voter cards. Read More

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