Resources

This analysis shows that the implementation of vote by mail causes a significant decrease in voter confidence in Washington and Colorado. However, this decrease appears to be temporary, disappearing after only a single election cycle.

In this paper, authors examine the effects of automatic voter registration (AVR) on both registration and turnout. They find that ind it does raise registration rates substantially, that the effect of AVR gradually builds the longer it is in place, and that the different types of AVR have significantly different effects on both registration and turnout.

Focusing on natural experiments in Texas and Indiana, this research finds that 65-year-olds turned out at nearly the same rate as 64-year-olds, despite the fact that only 65-year-olds could vote absentee without an excuse in these states. Being just old enough to vote no-excuse absentee did not substantially increase Democratic turnout relative to Republican turnout.

This research finds that expanding universal vote-by-mail has not dramatically advantaged either party historically.

This paper examines the factors underlying low turnout rates among youth voters. Using the 2004 - 2016 Current Population Survey, authors find that restrictive environments disproportionately hurt young voters by decreasing the probability they turn out by 16 percentage points, compared with older voters.

This study of California focuses on (1) vote-by-mail signature verification processes and (2) notice and remedy procedures for unverified signatures.

This report details the design and usability testing of an accessible ranked-choice voting ballot interface built to work for voters who are blind or very low vision, have limited or no use of their hands, or have cognitive or attention disabilities. Testing with participants with various disabilities found that no single design can be fully optimized for all modes, but a workable default is achievable.

This research tests four explanations for how vote by mail voters choose to return their ballot, including the social rewards of voting, the costs of voting, trust in U.S. Postal Service and a preference to cast a ballot after campaigning ends. It finds supporting evidence for each explanation conditioned by prior history of voting.

In this paper, authors analyze the targeted adoption of early in-person voting on public colleges and university campuses. Using data from the 2018 general election in Florida, authors find uneven effects of the policy reform on overall turnout, but consistent evidence that the adoption of on-campus early voting impacts the timing and volume of voter turnout among this group.

The research finds that online voter registration systems in some states have vulnerabilities that allow adversaries to alter or effectively prevent a voter's registration. The analysis additionally finds that ballot tracking systems raise serious privacy questions surrounding ease of access to voter data.

This report highlights key trends in voter turnout among voters with disabilities in the 2020 election. Authors note a significant increase in turnout among these voters compared to the 2016 general election, reducing the turnout gap with voters without disabilities to 5.7 percentage points. However, approx. 11% of voters with disabilities reported some difficulties voting.

In this paper, authors examine whether use of vote by mail exacerbates existing inequalities in mail-in ballot rejection rates. They find that younger voters were more likely to have their vote by mail ballot rejected than older voters due to lack of timeliness or deficiencies with the return envelopes. These findings highlight potential adverse impacts of expanded vote by mail on certain groups.