Member Resources

Where We Stand
Government: Voting

Goal:
Protection of the right of every citizen to vote. (LWVUS) (1970)

League action
Voting rights are defined by the Voting Rights Acts of 1965 and 1970 and include all necessary action from registration through tabulating election results. The League worked for a "yes" vote on the successful 1970 ballot question that called for a constitutional amendment to lower the Massachusetts voting age to 19. Adoption of the 26th amendment to the federal constitution in 1971 gave all citizens who were at least 18 years old the right to vote in all elections.

LWVM supports efforts to allow absentee voting in primaries (now enacted); clarify the wording and summaries of ballot questions; clarify registration procedures; promote open primaries and universal registration; extend and make uniform polling hours; decrease residence requirements; prevent fraud at the polls; and improve procedures of redress of voters’ grievances.

LWVM supports legislation to protect the right to vote by removing administrative obstacles through such measures as registration by mail and encouraging registration of high school students.

Background

• 1970: LWVUS convention adopted a bylaw change stating that the program of the League shall include "action to protect the right to vote of every citizen." This action was taken because members felt that concern for voting rights was a crucial part of the origins and basic purpose of the organization.

• 1970: State council supported the extension of the franchise to 18-year-olds.

• 1989-91: National voter registration legislation was voted a League priority.

CITIZEN’S RIGHT TO VOTE (LWVUS) (1982)
The League of Women Voters of the United States believes that voting is a fundamental citizen right that must be guaranteed.

Resolutions passed by LWVUS Convention as interpretations to the Citizen’s Right to Vote Position:

·         In order to ensure integrity and voter confidence in elections, the LWVUS supports the implementation of voting systems and procedures that are secure, accurate, recountable, and accessible.

·         The position on the Citizens’ Right to Vote can be interpreted to affirm that LWVUS supports only voting systems that are designed so that:

1.       they employ a voter-verifiable paper ballot or other paper record, said paper being the official record of the voter’s intent; and

2.       the voter can verify, either by eye or with the aid of suitable devices for those who have impaired vision, that the paper ballot/record accurately reflects his or her intent; and 

3.       such verification takes place while the voter is still in the process of voting; and

4.       the paper ballot/record is used for audits and recounts; and

5.       the vote totals can be verified by an independent hand count of the paper ballot/record; and

6.       routine audits of the paper ballot/record in randomly selected precincts can be conducted in every election, and the results published by the jurisdiction. (2006)

VOTING SYSTEMS (2005)

GOAL: Voting systems should be easy to use, administer and understand, encourage high voter turnout, encourage real discussion on issues, promote minority representation, and encourage candidates to run.

When electing someone to a single executive office at the state level, such as governor or attorney general, including primary and general elections, the voting system should require the winner to obtain a majority of the votes.

The League supports instant runoff voting. Cost and complexity make two-round runoff not acceptable.

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