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In face of threats, election workers vow: ‘You are not disrupting the democratic process’
Hundreds of election workers in Washington state’s second-largest county were busy opening mail-in ballots earlier this month when one of them came across a plain white envelope. As she cut it open, white powder leaked out. She carefully took off her gloves, put them down, backed away and called her supervisor. Workers evacuated the building […]
In scrapping its LGBTQ-related travel ban, California pivots to ‘hearts and minds’
In September, Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom officially repealed California’s 2016 ban on state-funded travel to states with laws targeting LGBTQ+ people. The idea behind the ban — which applied to bureaucrats, lawmakers, academics and even college athletes — was to use California’s economic heft to dissuade other states from enacting such laws. By that metric, […]
As ranked choice voting gains momentum, parties in power push back
Over the past decade, ranked choice voting has become increasingly popular. From conservative Utah to liberal New York City, 13 million American voters in 51 jurisdictions — including all of Alaska and Maine — now use the system, under which voters rank candidates based on preference, leading to an instant runoff in a crowded race. […]
Republican states arm teachers, fortify buildings in another year of school shootings
As another school year defined by mass shootings ends in America, Republican-led state legislatures passed measures this session to fortify schools, create guidelines for active shooter drills and safety officer responses, and allow teachers to be armed. Firearm restrictions, however, were a nonstarter in red states trying to curb school shootings. The legislation pushed by GOP lawmakers […]
Western states agree to Colorado River water-sharing agreement
The governors of Arizona, California and Nevada have announced a historic water-sharing agreement for the Colorado River in an attempt to salvage one of the West’s major sources of drinking water that has dwindled in severe drought. The agreement this week marks the culmination of months of tumultuous negotiations among seven Western states, whose 40 […]
Why Republican-led states keep leaving a group that verifies voter rolls
Eight Republican-led states this year left an interstate cooperative that seeks to maintain accurate voter registration rolls, and three more may join them — a move that election security experts say is fueled by conspiracy theories. Earlier this month, Virginia’s top election official said the state would become the latest to stop participating in the […]