ANALYSIS
The 2023 Elections: What’s New and What’s At Stake
We’re living through an extraordinary era in election law – and we have the data to prove it. Since 2020, well over 5,000 election bills have been introduced, reshaping the conversation – and well over 500 new laws have been enacted that have cumulatively transformed...
The Merits – and the Rise – of Vote Centers
In this month’s Hot Policy Take, we take a look at how states are shifting the role that vote centers play – or don’t play – in our local elections. While much less prevalent than changes to options like drop boxes or mail voting, since the 2020 election, nearly 100 bills concerning vote centers have been introduced in states around the country.
Enduring Outcomes of 2020: State Control And Local Elections
Since the 2020 election, state legislators and executives in several states have ramped up efforts to seize control of local election administration.
10 Years Since Shelby County v. Holder: Where We Are and Where We’re Heading
In this month’s Hot Policy Take, we take a closer look at Shelby County v. Holder, and how it sparked waves of election laws that restrict voting access across the country today – restrictive laws that often disproportionately harm voters of color.
States Move In Opposite Directions on Voter Registration & List Maintenance
In this month’s Hot Policy Take, we take a look at how certain states are suddenly bringing the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC), a widely trusted election list tool, under scrutiny, along with other changes in voter list maintenance happening around the country.
Another Change-Making Year
The Voting Rights Lab’s newest report — “Another Change-Making Year” is a first-of-its-kind report that examines election-related legislation introduced in the first quarter in states over the post-2020 period, a transformative time for elections policy nationwide.
The Transparency Trap: How Posting Ballot Images Online May Sow Distrust
Transparency is key when working to build – or rebuild – trust in American elections. But some so-called transparency efforts, such as posting ballot images online, can do just the opposite.
From Momentum to a Moment: Restoring the Vote to Those with Past Convictions
A decades-old conviction can deny a citizen’s access to the ballot box in some states – sometimes even for a lifetime. In fact, in the U.S. today, 4.6 million citizens – more than the entire population of the metropolitan areas of Seattle or Tampa – cannot vote...
Voting with Student ID in 2023: The State of the Law & Pending Legislation
Download a PDF of this fact sheet here. Just five states [1] have laws that require voter ID to cast a ballot and expressly forbid the use of student ID cards as a form of voter ID. In a sixth state, Arizona, the law allows for student ID cards to serve as voter ID if...
North Carolina: The Next Front in the Voting Wars
States like Texas, Florida, Georgia, Arizona have drawn the national spotlight for increasingly brazen attacks on voters and election administrators alike. Since 2020, each has enacted laws to restrict access to the ballot box. Each advanced narratives that erode voters’ confidence in our elections. And each saw rule changes that disproportionately harm Black and brown voters.
Now North Carolina – historically the site of some of our nation’s most shameful race-based voter suppression efforts – appears poised to join their ranks.
The Markup
VRL’s weekly election legislation update for insiders. Subscribe now.