Let's Talk about Voting: Lunch with Louden 10/23/14

Americans all across the country are now or are about to have the opportunity to vote. But will they?

Today we will be discussing voter participation in America with two experts in the field: Tomas Lopez, Brennan Center for Justice, and Rob Richie, Executive Director of FairVote.org Center for Voting and Democracy.

According to The Brennan Center for Justice: ince the 2010 election, new voting restrictions are slated to be in place in 22 states; in 15 states, 2014 will be the first major federal election with these new restrictions in place; the courts will play a crucial role in 2014, with ongoing suits challenging laws in seven states. Voting restrictions for the most part have to do with voter identification.

Laws to improve the election system and increase voting access passed in 16 states since 2012, and these laws will be in effect in 11 states this November. The most common improvements were online registration and other measures to modernize voter registration, and increased early voting.

According to FairVote: voter turnout in the US fluctuates in national elections, but has never risen to levels of most other well-established democracies. In countries with compulsory voting, turnout hovered near 90% in the 2000s. Other countries, experienced turnout rates near 80%. Overall, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries experience turnout rates of about 70%, while in the US, about 60% of the voting eligible population votes during presidential election years, and about 40% votes during midterm elections.