Washington Post, on a new report from Maplight:
Daniel G. Newman, president and co-founder of MapLight, told me: “We are playing with fire as a nation by failing to address the gaps and ambiguities in our election rules that could lead to a crisis in which both parties claim victory in the presidential election.” He added: “Instead of waiting for disaster, Congress should act now to protect the long-term integrity of our elections by clearly outlining how to resolve disputes about the presidential election. A functioning democracy depends upon having election rules that are crystal clear, not ambiguously cloudy.” The timeline to create a reliable system is short, so he urges the Senate to “pass the HEROES Act immediately to provide states with enough resources to properly conduct mail-in voting to respond to COVID-19.”
“In some areas, public education campaigns can inform voters what to expect in November, and how to recognize problems. An informed electorate can be its own best advocate, calling upon elected officials to improve ballot access or effectively responding to a challenged mail ballot.” It also notes: “This information can also be used by good government advocacy groups to focus their attention on the most severe risks in the limited time before the election. Finally, as the election occurs, this information will help identify any deviations from appropriate electoral procedures and can jumpstart legal remedies to those challenges.”