For more information: AAUW Fact Sheets and Position Papers on Affirmative Action, Athletics, Education, Managed Care Reform, Reproductive Rights, and Social Security Reform.

• In the News: Voters Concerned With Privacy in U.S. Elections, Study Finds
• Clash over Student Voting Rights
• NYS's Sunlight Site
• Take Our Daughters to the Polls
• The Sunlight Foundation
• The Power of One Vote

Updated: November 13, 2011

Clash over Student Voting Rights

Republican lawmakers in New Hampshire recently introduced a handful of bills that would limit college students’ ability to vote in the state. The proposed legislation would end Election Day registration and only allow college students to vote in their college towns if their parents had previously established permanent residency in the town. However, in light of vehement opposition from Democrats and students, the bills failed to pass the state House Election Law Committee. Their demise may have been related to a controversial YouTube video in which New Hampshire State House Speaker William O’Brien called students “foolish” and said they “just vote with their feelings”.

Republicans in Wisconsin and North Carolina have also introduced bills to restrict voter registration, including requiring state-issued ID cards. Democrats believe the Republican effort to change voter registration laws is an attempt to restrict democratic voters in potential 2012 battleground states.

AAUW members have a long tradition of voter education and registration. AAUW branches can increase the numbers of regular voters by bringing nonvoters into their network. This can be done woman to woman.

- from AAUW's Washington Update for March 11, 2011.

NYS's Sunlight Site

SunLightNY.com is a site which Attorney General Cuomo's office has developed to let us see the internal results of campaign financing. You can learn the source of a candidate's funds, the legislation representatives have sponsored and the laws governing special interests. It is a wonderful source of information, useful to all of us.

Take Our Daughters to the Polls

A new campaign has been launched to call on all parents to take their daughters to the polls when they vote on Election Day. The “Take Our Daughters to the Polls” campaign encourages adults to speak with their daughters about the importance of voting and to show them how to participate in the electoral process. The campaign was created by the White House Project, a nonpartisan, not-for-profit organization dedicated to advancing women’s leadership in the United States, and supported by numerous national organizations, including AAUW. You can participate by signing the pledge to take a young girl to the polls on Nov. 4 and by spreading the word.

- from AAUW's Washington Update for October 3, 2008.

The Sunlight Foundation

A great organization to empower watchdogs! The foundation is using the power of the Internet to "shine a light on the interplay of money, lobbying, influence and government in Washington in ways never before possible." They have compiled a great list of helpful sites for those of us wanting the insider's scoop on all things government and politics.

Just a few of the sites that the Sunlight Foundation features - and in some cases, funds - include:

• Congresspedia.org - The "online wiki-based citizens' encyclopedia on Congress" from the Sunlight Foundation and the Center for Media & Democracy.

• Contractor Misconduct Database - The government awards contracts to companies with histories of misconduct such as contract fraud and environmental, ethics, and labor violations. The Project On Government Oversight (POGO) is providing such data about the top 50 contractors.

• EarmarkWatch.org - Ever wanted to be an investigative reporter? Want to follow the money? This site is a user-friendly, online investigative tool that lets citizens determine "if earmarks address pressing needs, favor political contributors or are simply pure pork." The unique site guides users step by step through the process that an investigative reporter would follow - associating different kinds of political information with each earmark, and also guides users about how to use online resources on campaign finance, lobbying and federal spending for their research - tying the pork to the source. Users can also comment on and fact-check one each other's work, or send messages - including tips and suggestions - to others.

• Fedspending.org - OMB Watch's combination of data from the Federal Procurement Data System and the Federal Assistance Award Data System has created a free, searchable database of federal government contracting and spending. The database allows you to search contracts and grants by state, congressional district, contracting agency or type of award, and shows where the money is being spent and - very important - whether it was competitively bid or just given to Haliburton.

• GovTrack.us - This site uses THOMAS data and others to provide Congressional profiles and searchable legislative data. Users can sign up for email alerts to track Members, legislation and votes.

• LOUIS - Sunlight Foundation's Library of Unified Information Sources - "a search engine that combs through seven different sets of government documents. The seven sets of documents are Congressional Reports, the Congressional Record, Congressional Hearings, the Federal Register, Presidential Documents, GAO Reports, and Congressional Bills and Resolutions."

• OpenSecrets.org - This site is the premiere source of data on money in national politics. The user is able to search by member of Congress, by donor, or by industry sector. The site also contains four separate databases: lobbying, personal financial disclosures, congressional travel and revolving door.

• VoterWatch - "...combines C-SPAN video of Congress with the accompanying text from the Congressional Record to allow viewers to search the video for comments made by a member of Congress."

• WashingtonWatch - This site determines the average cost, or savings, per individual of each bill introduced in Congress by performing calculations on government estimates compared to the US population. The Web site provides users with pro and con arguments for each bill, allows comments on each bill, allows users to vote "yes" or "no" on the bills and provides a "write your rep" function.

• Watchdog.net - "...is a hub for data about politics. The site brings together census data, voting records, lobbying forms, campaign finance reports, and much more in one easy-to-understand place. And then it gives you the tools to actually do something about it."

The Power of One Vote

Your one vote can make a difference.

• In 1645, one vote gave Oliver Cromwell control of England.
• In 1649, one vote caused Charles I of England to be executed.
• In 1776, one vote gave America the English language instead of German.
• In 1845, one vote brought Texas into the Union.
• In 1868, one vote saved President Andrew Johnson from impeachment.
• In 1876, one vote gave Rutherford B. Haves the presidency of the United States.
• In 1923, one vote gave Adolph Hitler leadership of the Nazi Party.
• In 1960, a one-vole change in each precinct of Illinois would have denied John F. Kennedy the presidency.
• In 1968, Hubert Humphrey lost and Richard Nixon won the presidential election by a margin of fewer than three votes per precinct.
• In 2000, one vote in the U.S. Supreme Court lost the presidential election for Al Gore and won it for George W. Bush.

- from AAUW's Action Alert, Sept. 2004.

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