Members of the Presidential Commission on Election Administration visited the George Washington University Law School on Wednesday to discuss recommendations they made to President Barack Obama on how to improve voting in the U.S. Their top recommendations included limiting waits in voter lines to 30 minutes and encouraging online voter registration and early in-person voting. The meeting was convened by Professor of Law Spencer Overton and organized by William McGinley, chair of the Political Law Studies Initiative.
After being appointed by President Obama earlier this year, the commission conducted a six-month study to research and identify best practices in election administration. The final 112-page report, “Support the Voter,” details its key findings. President Obama met with the commission to review the report just before its GW briefing.
The bipartisan, 10-person commission was co-chaired by Robert Bauer, President Obama’s general counsel during the 2012 election, and Benjamin Ginsberg, who served as an election lawyer in Mitt Romney’s campaign. The commission also included professionals with experience in election administration and executives who have managed customer service expectations.
“We are calling for key issues in election administration to be treated as matters of public administration,” Mr. Bauer explained.
Mr. Ginsberg highlighted the report’s main recommendations, which include states adopting online voter registration and improving the accuracy of voter lists. The commission endorsed programs like the Interstate Voter Registration Cross Check Program and the Electronic Registration Information Center.
Voting technology was a focal point of the report. Discussions with voting administrators revealed that many voting machines are out of date. No federal funds have been allocated for new machines, and many states and local administrators have not begun to look into ways to budget replacements.
“The reality is virtually all the machines in the country were purchased in 2003 with Help America Vote Act (HAVA) money as a result of the Florida recount. Those machines are about to wear out,” Mr. Ginsberg said, adding that he hopes the report’s findings will start a conversation about potential upgrades.
Stanford Law School Professor Nathaniel Persily, the commission’s senior research director, explained that research showed websites are “woeful” when it comes to getting information to military voters. The report contains recommendations for these sites, as well as an analysis of how well election administrations are complying with legislation passed for military voters. For voters with disabilities or limited language skills, the commission encouraged having advisory groups and audits to ensure local jurisdictions meet these communities’ needs.
The report also points out that the number of schools used as polling places has decreased. In the aftermath of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, many school districts have taken security precautions to limit public access, Mr. Persily said.
The commission also prescribed relying on more absentee and early in-person voting to lessen the load on election days.
“It was unanimous among those who testified that channeling all of the election efforts into one day just magnifies the potential for administrative disaster,” Mr. Persily said. He explained that the report considers and addresses problems caused by early or absentee voting.
Mr. Bauer said the report was guided by the “interest and evolving expectations of voters, which should be addressed in a professional way.” While it may be difficult to standardize election administration among jurisdictions with many individual characteristics and differences, the commission concluded that its recommendations are applicable to voters everywhere.
The commission’s full report can be accessed online, along with voter registration tools and resources for local and state officials.