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Denver Election Reform Examiner

	Jan Tyler Go to Jan's Home Page Denver Election Reform Examiner
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Jan Tyler is a Certified Elections Registration Administrator who achieved The Election Center designation of Certified Elections Registration Administrator in 200l, 2004 and 2007. She served as the Denver Election Commissioner for two terms. Her interest in election administration began as a campaign worker for Jimmy Carter in his successful 1970 campaign for Governor. Jan worked for Carter for three years. As Election Commissioner she implemented reforms that included legislation to enable 16-year-olds to work elections. Jan continued her specialization as an international election monitor serving in Montenegro, Serbia and twice in Ukraine during the 2004 elections. In 2005 she served as an observer for two months in Kazakhstan, and in 2007 she traveled to Moldova for municipal elections. As Election Reform Examiner, Jan is dedicated to the education of media, political parties, candidates and the general public on issues of neutrality in the administration of elections.

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Denver Election Reform Examiner

Dirty little secrets of same day voter registration

November 19, 3:47 PM

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Registration and voting should be easy! If registration and voting are not easy, voters are disenfranchised! More voters would vote if registration and voting were not so hard.

Same-day voter registration. Give it to me! I'm entitled to it! I pay taxes (probably not income taxes though)!

Easy registration and voting does not improve voter turnout. Substantial research by the London School of Economics and American University indicates that easy voting measures - same day voter registration, early voting and mail ballots - do not improve voter turnout except in certain states.

Minnesota and eight other states have same-day voter registration. In January, both houses of Congress will consider legislation to federalize same day voter registration. It will cost hundreds of millions of dollars. Right now registration rates exceed 80%. We will spend hundreds of millions of dollars to make registration easier for 20% of the population.

Besides the cost, what is wrong with letting the Federal government take over our election systems? I like to point out how elections work in Kazakhstan, a dictatorship faking democracy. The Constitution leaves the time and manner of elections to the states. There will be opposition to federalizing what historically has been a states' rights issue.

A dirty little secret - most of those ten or fifteen academics in cahoots with activists who convinced everyone to junk millions of dollars worth of voting machines were disgruntled Gore supporters from 2000. As a so called voting integrity activist, an election administration coup by the Federal government should scare you more than the Supreme Court deciding an election.

Outrage won't come from the Democrats. Funny thing happened on the way to election reform. The Democrats are all over it, while the Republicans are shuffling off their Buffaloes. I'm not even sure the Republicans understand how elections are actually run. That would explain why they just react, instead of being proactive on issues like the mounting same day registration movement.

I wouldn't depend on the Republicans to defend our election systems against same day voter registration.

Until the Pentagon or some other agency invents a fail safe way to assure voter's eligibility, including current residency, same day voter registration should be left up to the states'.

States with same day voter registration find it is not problem free, as the media would have you believe. Significant problems exist, including nonresident's voting in local elections and inability to verify voter eligibility.

ElectionNeutralityNow's main objection is the partisan nature of enacting federal legislation clearly benefiting one party. Even if it is your party benefiting, what about when you aren't in control? Are you willing to denigrate our election systems to benefit

20% of the population? Why not empower those voters by educating them to their civic responsibility.

Of course, if you like the government of Kazakhstan, perhaps you want to take responsibility for those citizen's votes?