RANKED CHOICE VOTING
Spectrum News 1: Bill looks to ban ranked-choice voting in the Buckeye State
As the new year begins, Ohioans can expect a busy year at the polls. The normal voting process in the state allows individuals to choose one candidate they would like to see in office. However, in a process called ranked-choice voting, voters get to rank all the candidates on the ballot. The process has not been used in Ohio since the 1960s, and now a bill at the Statehouse is looking to ban the system in the Buckeye State.Â
Anchorage Daily News: Alaska ranked choice voting opponents fined over $94K for campaign ethics violations
Alaska’s campaign ethics commission found that opponents of ranked choice voting violated the state’s campaign ethics laws for months by funneling most of their funding through a tax-exempt church and inaccurately reporting their funding to the state. In a decision released late Wednesday, the Alaska Public Offices Commission issued more than $94,000 in fines for groups endeavoring to repeal Alaska’s voting system. In another decision released Thursday, the commission dismissed all allegations against Republican former U.S. Senate candidate Kelly Tshibaka, who had been accused in a separate complaint of using an organization she formed to support the repeal effort in violation of state law.Â
ELECTION ADMINISTRATION
2 Idaho News: New law in Idaho says student identification cards no longer count as valid ID to vote
A new voting law is now in effect in Idaho as we approach the presidential election. Student identification cards no longer count as a valid form of ID to vote. They have not been able to be used for registering to vote since July. Those fighting the laws say they also make it harder for people without a current address on their driver's license to register and vote. "This includes people in care facilities, people who no longer drive, our senior citizens, anyone who has moved and people with disabilities. I don't think that was intended," says Sam Sandmire with Babe Vote.
AMERICAN DEMOCRACY
Associated Press: FBI calls bomb threats that led to brief lockdowns and evacuations of some state capitols a hoax
A bomb threat emailed to officials in several states early Wednesday briefly disrupted government affairs and prompted some state capitol evacuations, but no explosives were found and federal officials quickly dismissed the threats as a hoax. The threats follow a spate of false reports of shootings at the homes of public officials in recent days. Connecticut, Georgia, Hawaii, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi and Montana were among the states that evacuated statehouse offices or buildings. Â
