New York State Finally Passes Early Voting Laws

NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo signs new voting reforms into law

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced today that he has signed new voting legislation into law that brings his state "into the 21st century," including (finally) allowing for eight days of early voting before an election.

Democrats have tried for years to enact early voting laws, but have been blocked by a Republican-controlled Senate until this new legislature.

The collection of voting reforms, marking the first bills passed by the new state legislature, will:

• Establish early voting: Enacting early voting will make voting more convenient for voters whose professional or family obligations make it difficult to physically get to the polls, as well as reduce waiting times and ease logistical burdens for poll workers.

• Synchronize federal and state elections: New York State currently holds separate primary elections for state and federal elections. With the addition of a presidential primary every four years and a general election, this means that in some cases New York is holding four different elections in a year. This can be confusing to voters and wastes administrative resources. This bill will unify the federal and state primaries once and for all and ensure that voters only go to the polls once to choose their nominees.

• Provide for pre-registration for minors: New Yorkers are not permitted to register to vote unless they will be 18 years of age by the end of the year, and by the date of the election in which they intend to vote. This bill will allow 16 and 17-year-olds to pre-register to vote, meaning that a voter will automatically be registered on his or her 18th birthday.

• Universal transfer of registration: When New Yorkers move to a different county, their voter registration does not move with them. This requires the voter to re-register with his or her new local board of elections as if he or she were registering for this first time. This bill will ensure that when a voter moves elsewhere in the state, his or her voter registration will seamlessly go with them.

• Close the LLC Loophole: This bill will close the LLC loophole by limiting political spending by an LLC to a total of $5,000 annually, which is the same limit as corporations. The bill will also require the disclosure of direct and indirect membership interests in the LLC making a contribution, and for the contribution to be attributed to that individual.

The new laws make New York the 38th state to hold early voting.

Early Voting In Some States Has Exceeded Total Voting In 2014 Midterm Elections

The New York Times is reporting that absentee and early voting in 18 states and Washington, D.C. for this year's midterm elections have already surpassed the total votes cast in the 2014 midterms.

Midterm elections tend to attract lower turnout than presidential contests; in 2016, more than 47 million votes were cast early, compared to 27 million in 2014. Yet this year’s advance vote count — which measures both absentee ballots and in-person early voting — has already exceeded the count from four years ago.

Thirty-seven states and Washington permit some form of early voting, with policies and deadlines varying by state. Most of these states also allow absentee voting.

In some cases, the voting is getting close to the levels of the 2016 presidential election.

Have you voted yet?

News Round-Up: October 22, 2018

(image via Instagram)

Some news items you might have missed:

• Fitness model and InstaHunk Dan Tai (above) asked his fans if they vote legs or abs...? I'm gonna have to call this a tie, right?

• The Houston Public Library has been sued over a city-sponsored Drag Queen Story Hour by haters who say the event violates their 'religious freedoms.'  Several similar events have taken place across the nation in an effort to promote literacy.

• Donald Trump is reportedly distancing himself from Republicans possibly losing the House after the midterm elections telling friends privately, “These are their elections … and if they screw it up, it’s not my fault.”

• Scientists have invented a 'self-lubricating' condom. The surface contains polymers that capture moisture from water and bodily fluids, trapping liquids on the condom for a consistently slippery feel.

• Some states are reporting higher than usual early voting in the midterm elections with Democrats outpacing Republicans which could signal a "blue wave." Las Vegas reported the first day turnout was triple that of the last midterm elections.

• Upcoming pop recording artist, LIVVIA, recently released her first official single, “Damn,” and has already garnered almost half a million views on YouTube in only two weeks.

In addition to creating some hooky pop music, LIVVIA also put in the time and effort to graduate this past Spring from the prestigious University of California, Berkeley with a degree in Economics.

Smart and talented - there you go.

“Damn” debuted on the Top 20 of Spotify’s New Music Friday & Apple Music’s A-List Pop. Check it out below.

Nevada: Trump Early Voting Lawsuit Already Dead - Judge Denies Motion

Judge Sturman in Nevada has just ruled against the Trump campaign's lawsuit about alleged violations in early voting discrepancies.

From CNN:

Judge Gloria Sturman, of the District Court for Clark County Nevada, ruled from the bench, saying County Registrar of Voters Joe P. Gloria was already obligated by state law to maintain the records that the Trump campaign is seeking.

The judge at times expressed frustration with Brian Hardy, a lawyer for the Trump campaign.

"I am not ordering him (Gloria) to preserve anything," she said, adding, "This is Election Day. He has other things to be doing."

The registrar's office said in a statement that the Trump campaign's request to preserve the records "is required by state law, and so it is something we are already doing."

Veteran Nevada political reporter Jon Ralston dropped these bon mots after the hearing ended just minutes ago:

DENIED: So basically Trump lawyers didn't talk to SOS, didn't do their due diligence, don't, basically, have a clue.

— Jon Ralston (@RalstonReports) November 8, 2016

That was the Trump campaign in a nutshell in that NV court hearing:
Unprepared.
Loony logic.
Lack of knowledge.

— Jon Ralston (@RalstonReports) November 8, 2016

Nevada: Trump Campaign Sues Clark County Registrar Over Early Voting

It looks like the Trumpster is already playing the role of sore loser.

The Donald Trump campaign has filed a lawsuit in Nevada against the Clark County Registrar claiming polls at a Clark County voting location were kept open "2 hours beyond closing time" on the final day of early voting.

The fact is, people were in line before closing, and Nevada state law allows registered voters to cast their ballot if they are in line before closing time.

From CNN:

Dan Kulin, a spokesperson for the county, told CNN that no early voting stations extended their closing times. They did, however, process voters who were in line at closing time to allow as many people to vote as possible. Trump lawyers are asking for an order to have the pertinent early vote ballots not to be “co-mingled or interspersed” with other ballots.

Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway recently told CNN's Anderson Cooper that the Trump campiagn had no evidence that there was any wrongdoing at the polling location.

.@KellyannePolls told @AC360 they had no evidence that there was any wrongdoing at this polling location. @jimsciutto pic.twitter.com/Mrj4Ilo8FN

— Correct The Record (@CorrectRecord) November 8, 2016

Jon Ralston: Early Voting Indicates Nevada Is "Solid Lean Clinton"

While the recent polls seem to lean in Donald Trump's direction, Nevada political expert Jon Ralston sees a rosier future for Hillary Clinton as he sums up the early voting results and how the numbers stack up:

On the presidential (and maybe applies to the U.S. Senate, too), some math still holds:

• Both candidates get 90 percent of base and split indies: Clinton by 4, 29,000 votes

• Both candidates get 90 percent of base, Trump wins indies by 10: Clinton by 2, 17,000 votes

• Both candidates get 90 percent of base, Trump wins indies by 20: Clinton by 3,000 votes

Note: Trump is not going to get 90 percent of the GOP base, and with all of those votes banked even before the Comey letter, it's almost impossible for him to win indies by 20. (Romney won indies by 7.) You see his challenge.

If Clinton holds her base here (data I have seen shows she is, and minority turnout is going up) and turnout patterns don't dramatically shift in the last two days of early voting, she can't lose Nevada. Solid lean Clinton right now.

More than 617,000 have voted in Nevada. That's 42.2 percent. More than half the vote is in unless Election Day turnout is well above the norm.

The Democrats have a 34,500 voter statewide lead (probably under 34,000 after the rurals are posted). That's 42-37, or about a point under the registration lead. The GOP turnout edge is 1.2 points.

Bolding is mine.

Philadelphia Transit Strike Threatens Election

In what looks to be a reckless, irresponsible move by the 4,700 workers of Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, the union decided to strike early Tuesday morning affecting nearly one million riders a day.

Plus, being in the middle of early voting and Philadelphia being a huge Democratic stronghold, it could affect the outcome of the election.

From the New York Times:

The authority’s regional rail service — the commuter lines that extend from the city into the suburbs — continued operating, providing an alternative in some parts of the city for riders who would usually take buses or subways. The commuter trains accepted transit passes and express trains made local stops to take on more passengers.

But the regional rail service, which normally provides 130,000 rides a weekday, could absorb only a fraction of the overflow. Trains became crowded and some ran as much as an hour late into the Center City area. The transportation authority warned of possibly dangerous overcrowding on commuter rail platforms during the evening rush.

Members of Transport Workers Union Local 234 had voted to go on strike at midnight if a contract settlement was not reached, and negotiations on Monday failed to produce an agreement. The union last walked out in 2009, in a strike lasting six days.

(h/t JoeMyGod)

Nevada: Democratic Voters Lead In Early Voting By 34K

As of this Halloween morning, registered Democratic voters showing up at the polls lead registered Republicans by 34,186, according to the Nevada Secretary of State website.

Washoe County, considered a bellwether, shows Dems with 2,500 lead, which is almost twice what it was in 2012.

From Nevada political expert Jon Ralston:

Dems are up 15 points in Clark (it was 16 in 2012), which is a point above registration, and that firewall is going to get to 60,000-plus, unless something strange happens. I repeat: Trump appears to have no path here, but the Senate race is not quite over yet.

Statewide turnout is now 31 percent of all voters -- Democrats are at 34.6 percent, Republicans at 33.9 percent and others at 23 percent. The Republicans actually have a slight turnout lead in Clark -- 34.9 percent to 34.3 percent, showing why that 142,000 Democratic registration lead matters. The Democratic turnout edge in Washoe is nearly 4 points (37-33).

Nevada: Democrats Lead By 30K+ In Early Voting

Nevada Democrats continue to lead by a healthy margin, over 30K,  at the polls after the first week of early voting.

Nevada early voting totals to date through Friday, October 28, 2016, via the Nevada Secretary of State website:

In-person early voting - Democrats - 150,014
In-person early voting - Republicans - 119,368 (-30,646)
In-person early voting - Other - 65,916

Absent / Mail-in ballots - Democrats - 16,840
Absent / Mail-in ballots - Republicans - 18,978 (+2,138)
Absent / Mail0in ballots - Other - 8,598

Total Democrats - 166,854
Total Republicans - 138,346 (-28,508)
Total Other - 74,514

Nevada: Democrats Have 24K Lead After 4 Days Of Early Voting

After four days of early voting in Nevada, the Secretary of State website shows Democrats opening a wide lead in voting.

When you combine in-person voting with returned mail-in ballots, the Democrats come in with 104,305 statewide.

The Republicans are down by 24,585 ballots with 79,720 registered GOPers getting their votes in so far.

Nevada: Democrats Continue Big Lead In Early Voting Turnout

After three days of early voting in Nevada, the Dems continue to outpace Republicans at the polls.

The Nevada Secretary of State's website shows 69,246 Democrats have voted in person so far (48.93%) versus 45,990 Republicans (32.5%).


The mail-in ballots total 29,309 so far with Republicans casting 12,445 versus the Dems' 11,100.

Of course, the lion's share of votes come from Clark County where almost 75% of Nevadans live, and  a big majority are Democrats.

It's notable that this marked the third straight day of 30,000+ voters in Clark County. Yesterday's total in Clark County was 34,603. For comparison, in 2012 the third day total was 30,598. 

All told that's 80,346 ballots from the Dems and 58,435 for the Republicans. A difference of almost 22,000.

As noted earlier, we don't know how those folks voted, but history shows the vast majority of voters cast their ballot for their registered party.

Donald Trump and his followers can point to turn-out for his rallies, but the true "enthusiasm" shows up at the ballot box.  Just saying...

New Pro-Hillary Campaign Spot "Ricardo" Features Pulse Survivor

The Human Rights Campaign released a new campaign spot in support of Hillary Clinton featuring Pulse Nightclub massacre survivor and Orlando resident, Ricardo Negron-Almodovar.

“You have to vote. Let your voice be heard. Every issue that we face has a root at the political level. We are a force to be reckoned with if we organize.”

Today is the first day of in-person early voting in Florida.

Go vote!

Democrats See High Numbers In Nevada Early Voting

The first weekend of early voting ended in Nevada as a blowout for the Democrats.

Of the 57,331 votes cast this weekend, 30,062 ballots (52.44%) were cast by Dems while only 17,121 votes (29.86%) by Republicans.

That's almost a 13,000 vote lead for Democrats. While we don't know exactly who folks voted for, most registered voters do vote their party. So, take these numbers as you may.

Early Voting Starts In Nevada

And..., DONE!

Now you KNOW I'm gonna get my vote on the very first day, the very first hour of early voting here in Las Vegas.

Long lines showing up all over the city (you can even vote at your grocery store!), but my polling place was moving along quite smoothly.

No shenanigans, no ugliness - just good, clean electoral processes happening on a gorgeous Nevada day.

Early voting accounts for nearly 50% of the vote in Nevada in presidential election years. And in those cycles with the presidency on the ballot, around 80% of registered voters show up to make their voices heard - 81% in 2012, 80% in 2008 and 79.9% in 2004.

If you need info about where to vote in Las Vegas, click here.

Now go vote, and if you've already voted come see me today at Las Vegas PRIDE in Sunset Park. I'll be hosting the mainstage from 5-7PM!

Looks like a long line but it moved quickly

I love all the early voters at The Target plaza on S. Eastern. #Vote #Nevada #Vegas #VoteBlue #ImWithHer pic.twitter.com/TCP2imE5BM

— Nicole (@NLB83) October 22, 2016

Early voting has started in Nevada. Galleria Mall Henderson Nevada. #voteearly #earlyvote #vegas pic.twitter.com/DtYzucZvUA

— Mike Valdez (@Vegas_Mike) October 22, 2016

They're lined up for the 1st day of early voting! polling places today: https://t.co/resOgrI5hL #DontLoseYourVoice #Vegas #vote pic.twitter.com/BlY5RkvbNI

— Clark County Nevada (@ClarkCountyNV) October 22, 2016

Voters inside Albertsons about to cast their votes. #earlyvote #RJnow pic.twitter.com/bVAIm6NCmk

— Raven Jackson (@ravenmjackson) October 22, 2016

It's nearly 10 am but still a line of people waiting to vote early outside my local grocery store. #RJnow #EarlyVote pic.twitter.com/KCZwYdMKGn

— Michael S. Davidson (@DavidsonLVRJ) October 22, 2016

I got my #earlyvote in for @HillaryClinton & @timkaine on the first day of early voting in #Nevada - GO VOTE! #ImWithHer #BetterTogether ✔👍 pic.twitter.com/cCD3HpOiQk

— KristinLasVegas (@KristinLasVegas) October 22, 2016

Hillary Clinton To Call For Minimum 20 Day Early Voting Period In Every State

Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton will use a voting rights speech at Texas Southern University to call for early voting periods in every state of at least 20 days.

From USA Today:

Clinton also plans to criticize what Democrats call Republican efforts to restrict voting — especially for African Americans and Latinos — through devices like voter identification laws.

“This is, I think, a moment when we should be expanding the franchise,” Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta tells The Washington Post. “What we see in state after state is this effort by conservatives to restrict the right to vote.”

Personally, I'm very supportive of the idea of more early voting days. Shorter time frames mean less folks are involved in the democratic process.

Plus, should there be some problem at the polls, it might give voters a chance to go address the issue and come back to vote.

President Obama, first sitting President to vote early