Nov./Dec. 2021
ENGAGE!
CID Newsletter
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CID Issues New Report on Voter Registration in CA
Informing efforts aimed at seeing as many eligible voters as possible participate in the electoral process has been a key purpose of the Center for Inclusive Democracy.
One method for encouraging more equitable election participation is Conditional Voter Registration (CVR), which allows voters to register to vote or change voter registration details up to and on Election Day. During the 2020 election cycle, CVR was expanded to all voting locations in all counties in California for the first time.
Key findings of the new report include:
· In the 2020 General Election, 87.9% of eligible voters were registered to vote in California, the highest registration rate in 80 years, and up almost 10 percentage points from 2016.
· Asian Americans, Latinos, and young voters were underrepresented in their share of registered California voters in 2020, compared to their share of the eligible voter population in the state.
· While just 1.0% of all voters used CVR in the 2020 General Election, Asian-American, Latino, youth, and new voters used CVR at higher rates than the general population.
· Provisional ballot use in the 2020 General Election was relatively low (0.3%), and lower when compared to the 2020 primary election; of those using provisional ballots, Latino, youth and new voters used them at higher rates than the general population.
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Justice Dept. Files Voting Rights Suit Against Texas Over New Map |
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The U.S. Justice Department is suing Texas over the state’s plan to redraw its voting districts, saying it would essentially make ballots cast by Black and Latino voters count for less than those of others. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland said that the redistricting plan violates Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, which says that voters cannot be denied equal access to the political process based on their race or ethnicity.
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New poll shows challenges for Democrats ahead of 2022 |
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President Biden and congressional Democrats are confronting challenging political realities as they prepare to close out the year and head into 2022, according to a new Harvard CAPS/Harris poll.
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California Politics: Who wants to fix recall elections? |
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Late last month, the two election committees of the California State Legislature held joint public hearings to discuss options for potentially revamping the recall process in the state. The recall process has remained largely unchanged since it was put into place in 1911. |
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Senate Republicans block key voting rights bill |
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On November 3, Republican Senators blocked the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, a substantial voting rights bill that was passed by the House of Representatives in August. The bill is one of two major pieces of voting rights legislation that Democrats are pushing in Congress to thwart Republican-led efforts to erode easy access to the vote, which mostly affects communities of color. |
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8 takeaways from the 2021 elections |
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Analysts examine a number of tight state and local elections in November 2021—from the governor races in Virginia and New Jersey to city mayoral contests—and make predictions about their impact on next year’s mid-term elections. |
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Marin County Election Advisory Committee |
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On Dec. 17, Director Mindy Romero will present findings from the 2020 elections to the Marin County Election Advisory Committee, and provide insights about the Voters Choice Act (VCA). Marin County is currently considering adoption of the VCA model. |
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52nd Annual Progress Seminar |
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CID Director Mindy Romero was among panelists presenting Nov. 5 at the 2021Virtual Progress Seminar, an annual event sponsored by the Chamber San Mateo County bringing together local business, government and community leaders to discuss the most important issues facing communities. The event was co-chaired by Assembly Speaker pro Tem Kevin Mullin, San Mateo County Supervisor Carole Groom, and President and CEO of SAMCED Rosanne Foust. |
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The Maddy Report – California’s Changing Electorate |
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The Maddy Report TV show aired the “California’s Changing Electorate” on Dec. 5. You can view the show soon on the Maddy’s Institute’s YouTube channel.
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CID Director Mindy Romero weighs in on this post-analysis of the California gubernatorial recall attempt, which concludes that the race largely came down to partisanship. “This went down strictly along party lines,” she offers. “There was some crossover, but very little.”
Columnist George Skelton looks at what’s next for the California’s Republican party post-recall. While several political pundits declared victory for Governor Gavin Newsom in defeating the recall, CID’s Romero disagreed.
Mindy Romero tells Capitol Public Radio that the recall went down strictly along party lines, with very little crossover. “This breakout right now that we’re seeing isn’t a reflection on everyone being satisfied with Newsom,” she said. “It’s a reflection of the party dynamics that we have in California.”
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Many of our partners and supporters are hiring. Check out the job opportunities below: |
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Share Your Democracy Research with CID |
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CID is interested in broadening awareness of new research on elections, voting, civic engagement and related issues. Have research to share? Just send a short write-up to Alexander Richardson at ar04928@price.usc.edu for consideration. Thanks for reading and staying engaged!
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Center for Inclusive Democracy |
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The Center for Inclusive Democracy (CID), formerly known as the California Civic Engagement Project (CCEP), is part of the USC Sol Price School of Public Policy and is based in Sacramento. CID conducts a range of national and multi-state research initiatives exploring voting behavior, civic engagement, electoral and economic research, the intersection of social justice and democracy, and more. Its research informs and empowers a wide range of policy and organizing efforts aimed at eliminating disparities in social and economic well-being. Now a cornerstone project nested within CID’s larger umbrella, the CCEP continues to produce groundbreaking resources and research for California. |
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