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News :: Elections & Legislation |
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League Of Women Voters To Honor The 83rd Anniversary Of The 19th Amendment |
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by League of Women Voters
(No verified email address) |
25 Aug 2003
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"Let's work together to drown out the negative campaign rhetoric and images of election tampering that turn voters off. It might be as simple as giving people reasons to return to the voting booth and cast a ballot, rather than reasons why they should not..." |
WASHINGTON - August 25 - On Tuesday, August 26th, 2003, the League of Women Voters (LWVUS) will celebrate the 83rd anniversary of the 19th Amendment. This landmark legislation, passed in 1920, granted women the right to vote. The League plans to use this occasion to reflect upon the positive changes and progress made on voting rights in the past 83 years and emphasize the continued need to improve our election process.
"This is a great opportunity to send voters a simple, yet compelling message," said LWVUS President Kay J. Maxwell. "Our election system does have fundamental problems - decreasing voter turnout, poor disability access and inconsistent voter registration systems," noted Maxwell. "But the League, along with many other organizations, and government and elections officials, is working to make the process better," Maxwell added. "Let's work together to drown out the negative campaign rhetoric and images of election tampering that turn voters off. It might be as simple as giving people reasons to return to the voting booth and cast a ballot, rather than reasons why they should not," Maxwell stated.
"Bringing voters back mean correcting the most important problems plaguing our election systems: accurate voter registration lists, protections against erroneous voter purges, provisional balloting systems that protect the right of every eligible voter to cast a ballot and have it counted, disability access, poll worker training that is adequate and uniform, and updated voting machines," stated Maxwell.
"States and localities, as well as the federal government, are falling behind in making the reforms required in the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) that was passed in 2002," acknowledged Maxwell. "Last year Congress and the President delivered only 70 percent of what they promised. This year the President proposed even less -- $500 million out of a promised $1.1 billion. The new federal Election Administration Commission, also promised in HAVA, is still not up and running. Most states are postponing the new statewide voter list requirement and many states and localities are not putting sufficient resources into voter education and poll worker training."
"The League, founded by women suffragists after passage of the 19th Amendment, has worked tirelessly for the past 83 years as a voice for citizens and a force for change. League members across the nation continue the fight to improve and reform our election systems for the benefit of all citizens regardless of gender, age, or ethnicity. We will continue to work to make the system better until every voice is heard and every vote is counted," Maxwell concluded. |
See also:
http://www.commondreams.org/news2003/www.lwv.org
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