ACLU Releases Report from 2008 Election Protection Campaign
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 12, 2009
CONTACT: Meredith Curtis, ACLU of Maryland, 410-889-8555; media@aclu-md.org
BALTIMORE – The American Civil Liberties Union of Maryland today released its 2008 Election Protection campaign report, which details problems we identified during the election and includes recommendations for legislative and administration reforms. The report provides an excellent overview of how well Maryland’s election system performed during the 2008 cycle, and offers useful advice for future improvements, including addressing long lines, increased transparency in voter registration and purging processes, accurate and updated election and voting rights information, and greater clarity regarding free speech rights at polling sites.
Providing services during every statewide and federal election since 2002, the ACLU of Maryland’s Election Protection program educates voters about their rights, addresses voter intimidation and disenfranchisement, and solves problems at the polls. Our 2008 effort was an expanded campaign that reached out to voters in all corners of the state, distributed 20,000 Maryland Voter Empowerment Cards in English and Spanish, resolved numerous problems before and on Election Day, and monitored polling sites that saw high turn-out and long lines.
The following are ACLU of Maryland’s voting rights priorities for 2009 legislative session:
· Election Day Registration: Increase voter participation by allowing individuals to register to vote on Election Day.
· Election Integrity: Protect and advance transparent, accessible, and accountable elections in Maryland. Support voluntary public campaign funding to end politicians' reliance on special interest money and provide an alternative way for candidates to finance their campaigns.
· Disability Access: Ensure privacy and accessibility of the voting process to all voters, irrespective of disability. Adopt recommendations of the American Bar Association to correct the election law language that broadly denies a specific group of individuals with disabilities the right to vote without a specific finding that they are not competent to vote.
· Early Voting: Support the implementing legislation of the approved amendment to the state Constitution allowing early voting in Maryland. Support an early voting station in every county that is accessible to all voters, including voters with disabilities.
· Ex-Offender Voting Rights: Remove lingering barriers to full enfranchisement for ex-offenders.
Read our 2008 Election Protection report
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