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'I'm not invisible': Kentucky millennials with felony records head to the polls for first time

Chloe Atkins

October 31, 2020 |

NBC News |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Kentucky

More than 170,000 people with felony records in Kentucky won the right to vote in the 2020 election under an order by the governor. Although not as concrete as legislation, the governor's order at least temporarily rescinds the state's permanent voting ban for most people with felony convictions. The order pertains to people with non-violent offenses. Unlike some states' re-enfranchisement policies, Kentucky's does not require payment of outstanding fines or restitution. The policy is seen as a particular benefit to people of color and millennials.

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Forget civics class: Students want to make a difference in real life

Charlotte West

October 30, 2020 |

The Hechinger Report |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Oakland, California

The Oakland Youth Vote started as a youth-led ballot initiative to give 16- and 17-year-olds the right to vote for school board representatives. Student activism helped get the initiative on the November 2020 ballot and the Oakland City Council promised to fund and implement the measure if it is approved. The ballot measure passed with 67% of voters supporting it. Voting for school board representatives will allow students to have a say in the policies and decisions that shape their education and ensure that the diverse student body is appropriately represented.

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How Cook County Jail Became the Country's First Jail-Based Polling Place

Kiran Misra

October 30, 2020 |

Belt Magazine |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Chicago, Illinois

As the first jail to serve as a polling place for the people incarcerated there, the Cook County Jail saw the highest number of votes cast in a primary election in decades during the spring primary. On two weekends of early voting for the fall general election, more than 2,000 people cast their ballots, nearly 40% of the jail's population. In jail, in-person voting has several advantages over mail-in voting, which in the past was the only option, as at all other jails. Because most people held there have not been found guilty, they are eligible to vote. Illinois also allows same-day registration.

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Election Season Is Wildfire Season. These Voters Lost Everything.

Julia Thomas

October 29, 2020 |

The New Republic |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Oregon

Rule changes in counties impacted by wildfires have made it easier for displaced residents to vote in the 2020 presidential election by using their temporary residence, shelter, a P.O. box, or their county election office to receive a ballot. Social media campaigns inform residents about their voting options, in addition to wildfire responses, and thousands of people have changed the address where they want to receive their ballot. The number of registered voters also increased by tens of thousands in many counties.

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S.D. election officials take new approaches to voting amid pandemic

Bart Pfankuch Nick Lowrey

October 28, 2020 |

South Dakota News Watch |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, South Dakota

Some officials took steps to make registration and voting easier and safe during the coronavirus pandemic. After issues during the primary, many counties enlisted additional staff and expanded infrastructure to process mail-in ballots. Recruitment initiatives in high schools helped replace higher-risk senior poll workers. County auditors helped assisted-living residents vote by validating their identities through a glass barrier and working with staff to safely deliver ballots. Several satellite polling locations were set up, including adjacent to tribal nations, to increase access to voting.

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Ismaili, Ahmadi Muslims push national voter registration efforts

Aysha Khan

October 26, 2020 |

Religion News Service |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States

Muslim civic advocacy groups Emgage and Ismailis Rise Up have partnered to engage a more diverse Muslim population in the 2020 election. They added thousands of contacts among new Muslim voters in six states, trained volunteers in electoral organizing and countering voter suppression, use personal connections to encourage people to vote, and will staff the Election Protection Hotline, where voters can get help in their native language. They also published videos about voter registration and mail-in voting in languages commonly spoken by Ismaili families and held virtual events aimed at mobilizing seniors.

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Ballots Behind Bars

La Risa Lynch

October 24, 2020 |

The Crisis Magazine |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Chicago, Illinois

Chicago Votes works to ensure access to voting for people awaiting trial in jail. In addition to registering thousands of voters, they helped pass a Cook County law designating the nation’s largest single-site detention facility as a polling place. This access enabled 1,850 people to cast their votes and about 600 people were able to take advantage of same-day registration and voting, which isn’t possible with traditional absentee ballot voting. Addressing jail-based disenfranchisement, which disproportionately impacts communities of color, gives people a voice in policies that directly impact them.

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Latinos the targets of election disinformation – but activists are fighting back

Amy Yee

October 22, 2020 |

The Guardian |

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Under 800 Words

Response Location: United States

Civic and advocacy groups fight disinformation targeted at Latinx voters and conduct voter registration and education outreach. Voto Latino encourages young people to help older relatives spot disinformation and trained its staff to spot and report it to the watchdog group, Disinfo Defense League. Social media posts then flag the information as false. Personal relationships are an effective way to counter disinformation and also help encourage people to vote. Voto Latino alone has registered over 500,000 voters since mid-2019, more than the total amount since the organization began in 2004.

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Their App Sends Free Mail to Incarcerated People. Now They're Helping Prisoners Register to Vote

Emily Nonko

October 20, 2020 |

Next City |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States

Ameelio is a technology startup launched by Yale students to facilitate free communication between people who are incarcerated and loved ones. In their first six months, the group went from sending 300 to over 4,000 letters a week to facilities in the United States. Their initial goal was to provide a not-for-profit alternative to the oftentimes predatory prison telecommunications industry. Recently they began a voter registration initiative where they send registration instructions, a blank voter registration application, and ballot request form to people who are incarcerated and eligible to vote.

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San Juan County expands in-person voting on the Navajo Nation during the pandemic

Zak Podmore

October 18, 2020 |

The Salt Lake Tribune |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Navajo Nation, United States, Utah

A legal settlement in Utah expanded access to voting on Navajo Nations and influenced similar settlements in Arizona. All registered voters receive a mail-in ballot, but counties also offer early voting and election-day polling locations, where Navajo translators are available. Counties run bilingual radio, print, and social media ads to inform residents about their voting options. The hybrid in-person and mail-in system boosted turnout of active voters in San Juan County’s 2018 election by 10 percentage points from 2014, when the lawsuit was filed because the county closed in-person polling places.

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