‘Voting and Elections’ Archives
SAVE DEMOCRACY – EMPOWER YOUNG VOTERS!
By THE LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS MINNEAPOLIS This is the fifth in a series of six articles about the 2023 Minneapolis City Election, brought to you by the League of Women Voters Minneapolis. All articles available at lwvmpls.org/for-voters Young Americans have been gathering strength and exerting more influence in recent elections but need help realizing their full political force as voters. For the health of our democracy, we want them to do so. While historically underrepresented at the polls, more 18–29 year-olds voted in the 2020 presidential election nationally than in 2016- close to 50%. Even 2022 midterm turnout was better than expected, inching toward 30%. A positive trend but a far cry from the electoral clout the second-largest age demographic in the U.S. could have. Generation Z (for Zoomer) are those born between 1997 and 2012, with Gen Z young adults expected to make up 17% of all eligible voters by 2024 and 35% by 2036. Combine Zoomers (sometimes called [...]
Be An Informed Voter: Understanding Ranked-Choice Voting
By LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS MINNEAPOLIS Number 4 in a Series Since November of 2009, Minneapolis has employed ranked-choice voting in all municipal elections, and will do so again this year. Ranked-choice voting (RCV) is a method of voting where you can choose up to three candidates in the order of your preference. You are given the opportunity to ‘rank’ your vote - first choice, second choice, and third choice. The identical roster of candidates will be listed in three columns on your ballot, one column for each choice. This voting method allows your vote to count toward another candidate if your favorite (first choice) candidate loses on the first ballot. For example, if your first-choice candidate doesn’t win, your vote is transferred to your second choice. Then, if your second choice is eliminated, your vote is transferred to your third choice. It is important to understand that you are not required to vote for more than one candidate – the second and third [...]
Right to Vote Restored to 55,000 Paroled Felons
By THE LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS MINNEAPOLIS On March 3rd Governor Tim Walz signed into law legislation that restores the vote to more than 55,000 formerly incarcerated Minnesotans. In the largest expansion of voting since 18-year-olds won the right to vote in 1972, Minnesota joins 22 other states to give felons their voting rights, once they have completed their prison term. Previously anyone serving on probation or parole had to finish that extended sentence before voting rights were restored. Walz called this “a good day for democracy. We’re a country of second chances…and the idea of not allowing those voices to have a say in the very governing of the communities they live in is simply unacceptable.”After two decades of advocacy, a large coalition of groups sued the state for this constitutional right under the principle of no taxation without representation. One of the plaintiffs, Jennifer Schroeder, had served one year for a felony drug charge – but was given a 40 year [...]
