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Obama Launches New Presidential Commission on Election Administration to Address Voting Issues

Yesterday, President Obama signed an executive order establishing a new Presidential Commission on Election Administration, which will address issues like voter registration and access, ballot design and contingency planning. The presidential commission, which was first announced in the president’s State of the Union Address in February, will be co-chaired by Bob Bauer, a Democrat, and Ben Ginsberg, a Republican. Both led the legal teams for the Obama and Romney campaigns during the 2012 presidential election.

BPC’s new Commission on Political Reform, which launched earlier this month at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Foundation, is examining practical improvements to our electoral system, including redistricting and primary reform, as well as congressional reform and ways to promote public service. The 30-member group will make recommendations on election reform in mid-2014 that aim to improve American discourse and political institutions during an era of heightened political polarization.

BPC’s commission includes several election law experts, including former Texas Secretary of State Hope Andrade, Yale Law School’s Heather Gerken and former ranking member of the House Administration Subcommittee on Elections Charlie Gonzalez, as well as commission co-director John Fortier. In October 2013, just before the first anniversary of the 2012 presidential election, the commission will host a National Conversation on American Unity at Ohio State University focused on electoral reform.

Learn more about BPC’s Commission on Political Reform here.

2013-03-29 00:00:00

 

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