The Pew Charitable Trusts - State and Consumer Initiatives about Election Initiatives

Online Voter Lookup Tools

How do voters find the information they need on and before Election Day? Many voters turn to online resources, such as state election websites, to find polling locations, the status of absentee ballots, and other key information before casting their votes.

Election Data Dispatches

Election Data Dispatches provides data, research and analysis about election administration in the U.S.

Who Uses Online Voter Registration in Maryland?

A recent analysis of Maryland’s online voter registration system finds that new voters using the online system are slightly more likely to register as Republicans compared to those registering by paper.

Voting Machine Costs in South Carolina

South Carolina’s touch-screen voting machines do not have voter-verified paper audit trails, and adding them would cost the state more than $17 million, found a report released by the South Carolina General Assembly Legislative Audit Council. Glenn McConnell, then president pro tempore of the state Senate, who had concerns about the reliability of the machines and the lack of a paper trail, requested the audit in 2012.

Fewer Minnesota Absentee Ballots Rejected in 2012 Election

A recent report from the Office of the Minnesota Secretary of the State found that even though more than twice as many absentee ballots were cast in 2012 than in 2010, fewer were rejected in last November’s general election.

Infographic: Online Lookup Tools For Voters 2012

How do voters find the information they need on and before Election Day? Third in a series of reports on this subject, Pew outlines which online election tools are made available for voters in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Which tools does your state offer?

Prince William County, VA, 2012 Election Analysis

Like its neighbor Fairfax County, Prince William County, VA, established a bipartisan task force to examine long lines faced by some of its voters at the polls during last November’s general election.

North Carolina Provisional Ballots

North Carolina provides access on its board of elections website to some of the most detailed elections data in the country. This includes information about provisional ballots cast, such as not only the number but also why they were issued—hard-to-find data in most states.

Early Ballots and Provisional Voting in Pima County, AZ

After the November 2012 election, Pima County, AZ, joined its neighbor, Maricopa County, in providing detailed postelection data, specifically related to provisional ballots

Long Lines at the Polls in Fairfax County, VA

A recently released report from the Bipartisan Election Process Improvement Commission of Fairfax County, VA, identified several reasons voters faced long lines at the polls during last November’s election.

Provisional Ballot Use Increases in Nevada County, CA

Nevada County, CA, released a report analyzing its elections over the past decade. The study found that although the number of registered voters and ballots cast remained steady, the number of provisional ballots issued increased significantly.

Johnson County, KS, Elections

Brian Newby, elections commissioner in Johnson County, KS, recently reached a milestone. Since he became commissioner in January 2005, the county has administered 50 elections, but only 26 of these were planned.

Most Election Jurisdictions Have Small Populations

Recent data confirm previous research showing that most election jurisdictions have a relatively small electorate.

Maryland Releases 2012 Elections Data

Maryland recently released its 2012 election administration and voting survey, becoming the first state to make its 2012 data available to the public online.

Governing Magazine: Building an Election System That Works

Sue Urahn: To achieve an election system that is convenient, accurate and fair, state and local leaders need data to review and track their voting processes—from registration to ballot counting.

Ohio Provisional Ballots in the 2012 General Election

Nearly 210,000 provisional ballots were issued in Ohio in last November’s general election, almost the same number issued in 2008.

Voting Equipment Costs in Massachusetts

Replacing old voting equipment does not always mean buying new machines. In Lawrence, MA, voters cast paper ballots that are then counted by optical-scan technology. The voting booths where they fill in their ballots can wear out, too.

Special Ballots in the District of Columbia

In 2012, the District of Columbia issued voters an unprecedented number of special ballots—which are the same as provisional ballots, according to the city’s 2012 After-Action report. This was due in part to the city’s use of Election Day registration for the first time in a presidential election.

Vote by Mail Election in Albuquerque, New Mexico

The city of Albuquerque is holding a special election to amend the city charter that will be conducted entirely by mail, and the early returns show some problems with the process.

The Cost of Eliminating Election Day Registration in Wisconsin, Part Two

The Wisconsin Government Accountability Board recently released its final report on the cost of ending Election Day registration in the state. The study estimated the price tag at $14.5 million, almost three times as much the initial projection provided in a preliminary report last December.

Orange County, California, Poll Workers

Since 2009, the Orange County registrar of voters has been conducting customer service surveys, including surveys of poll workers.

Cost of Provisional Ballots, Maricopa County, AZ

This past November, Maricopa County, Arizona, issued the most provisional ballots in its history. In an in-depth report, the county elections department provides detailed information including not just why these ballots were issued and rejected, but also estimates of how much they cost.

Mail Ballots in Contra Costa County, California

A newly released report from Contra Costa County, California, shows more voters than ever voted by mail in the November 2012 presidential election, reflecting a general trend in California.

Voter Registration in Colorado

In a review of Colorado’s 2012 general election, the secretary of state’s office describes its participation in the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC), a data center the state formed in partnership with Pew and six other states. In mid-September, using reports from ERIC, the state identified more than 720,000 Coloradans as eligible to vote but unregistered and invited them to register online, rather than using the traditional and inefficient paper forms.

Washington Post: Obama’s Proposed Voting Commission Under Partisan Fire From Both Sides

President Obama’s proposed commission on electoral reform aimed at improving voting efficiency and reducing long wait times for voters is producing heated criticism from advocates on both the right and the left.

Early Voting in Tennessee

In 1994 Tennessee became one of the first states to allow in-person early voting. And like other states, Tennessee has seen the number of voters casting ballots before Election Day increase significantly in the years since.

Pew Experts Respond to President's State of the Union Address

In his 2013 State of the Union address, President Barack Obama raised two issues that are relevant to the work of The Pew Charitable Trusts: economic mobility and elections.

Election Initiatives Response to Bipartisan Voting Commission Announcement

In his State of the Union address, President Barack Obama announced a commission to improve the voting experience on Election Day. This is an important step forward. Pew Election Initiatives Director David Becker released the following in response to the president's announcement.

St. Lucie County, Florida, Election Costs Double

St. Lucie County, Florida, which had a number of problems this past Election Day, paid twice as much for elections in 2012—$760,000—as they did in 2004 and 2008—approximately $375,000 per year.

Elections Performance Index

Earlier this week the Pew Charitable Trusts released the Elections Performance Index, which examines election administration across all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

New York Times: Lost Votes, Problem Ballots, Long Waits? Flaws Are Widespread, Study Finds

The flaws in the American election system are deep and widespread, extending beyond isolated voting issues in a few locations and flaring up in states rich and poor, according to a major new study from the Pew Charitable Trusts.

Elections Performance Index

The Elections Performance Index is a project that, for the first time ever, examines election administration performance across all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Measuring State Elections Performance

The Elections Performance Index is the first-ever comprehensive assessment of election administration in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

New Pew Study Identifies Seven States with Best Election Administration Performance in 2008 and 2010

Seven states performed well in both the 2008 and 2010 elections including Colorado, Delaware, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, Washington, and Wisconsin. The Pew Charitable Trusts released an Elections Performance Index that, for the first time ever, examines election administration performance across all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The worst performing states during those years included Alabama, California, Mississippi, New York, Oklahoma, South Carolina, and West Virginia.

Adding Precincts in Summit County, Ohio

In recent election cycles, many jurisdictions reduced their numbers of precincts and polling places in part to save money. Last year Summit County, Ohio was one of these, decreasing the number of precincts from 475 to 298, which county officials estimate saved between $100,000 and $120,000.

Military and Overseas Voters in 2012

At its recent summit, the Overseas Vote Foundation released its fifth post-election survey of military and overseas voters. Read more about the findings.

Vote by Mail in Hawaii

A new poll conducted by Honolulu Civil Beat found that 47 percent of registered voters in Hawaii favor moving to an all vote-by-mail system like Oregon and Washington use, and 35 percent oppose such a shift.

New Hampshire Voter ID Update

We noted late last year that New Hampshire was, for the first time, going to send confirmation letters to voters who arrived at the polls without the ID required by the state’s new law and had to sign affidavits before voting.

Online Voter Registration in California

A recent study from the University of California, Davis found that after online voter registration became available in the state on September 19, 2012, approximately half of all voter registrations came via this method.

Provisional Ballots in Cuyahoga County, Ohio

The use of provisional ballots has been the subject of much discussion in Ohio, with the state issuing these ballots at some of the highest rates in the nation over the past several elections.

Governing Magazine: Collaboration, Technology and the Lessons of Election Day

Sue Urahn: This year's elections demonstrated how teamwork between governments and the technology sector can make voting information more accessible, save taxpayer dollars and improve the efficiency of the voting process.

Absentee Voting in Miami-Dade County, Florida

Miami-Dade County, Florida’s largest election jurisdiction, which attracted attention on Election Day for long wait times at the polls, also experienced a dramatic rise in the number of absentee voters in November 2012 as compared with 2008.

Voter List Maintenance in Orange County, California

Late last year, we featured the significant amount of post-election data provided by the registrar’s office in Orange County, California. The office also provides a great deal of information related to other aspects of election administration, including reports on voter registration accuracy and voter list maintenance.

Overseas Voting Assistance

At Pew’s December Voting in America conference, the Federal Voting Assistance Program (FVAP), charged with serving America’s military and overseas voters, offered details on the kinds of support it provided for the 2012 election.

Revisiting Provisional Ballots in Philadelphia, PA

Following the November election, we featured the significant increase in the use of provisional ballots in Philadelphia as compared with 2008. Preliminary analysis by city officials has shed some light on what happened.

Notable County: Maricopa County, Arizona—Part II

In our previous dispatch, we looked at provisional ballots in Maricopa County, Arizona. Today, we examine new data the county shared at Pew’s recent Voting in America conference, showing the impact that online voter registration continues to have in the state’s most populous county.

Notable County: Maricopa County, Arizona–Part I

We return yet again to Maricopa County, Arizona and the plentiful data its county recorder’s office makes publicly available on a regular basis.

Cost of Eliminating Election Day Registration in Wisconsin

Recently, several Wisconsin legislators have discussed drafting legislation to end Election Day registration, which the state has allowed for more than 35 years.

Voting in America 2012

On December 10–11, 2012, Pew's Election Initiatives team brought together approximately 200 leaders from the election administration field—election officials, academics, media, advocates, and tech experts—to take a look back at this election, and look forward to policy reform in the coming years.

Colorado and Mobile Voter Registration

This past election, Colorado became the first state to optimize access to its online voter registration system via a mobile device.