Posts by Barnett Zitron

Monday, January 19th, 2009

A More Perfect Union

Ambassador Andrew Young

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – As with so many people across the globe, today is very near and dear to Why Tuesday?’s heart. This organization was founded in the spirit of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 by William B. Wachtel whose father, Harry, was a close friend and advisor Dr. King. So today, we also salute the accomplishments of Why Tuesday? Board members Andrew Young and Martin Luther King, III. (more…)

Wednesday, October 29th, 2008

Texas-Sized Early Voting Turnout

Welcome KTRH morning news listeners in Houston! Even up here in the Big Apple we say everything is bigger in Texas. Well, perhaps not the skyscrapers. And yet, when it comes to early voting that certainly is true.

Moreover, in 2004 over 2.4 million Texans or nearly 30% of voting eligible population voted early. So far in 2008, over 2 million Texans have voted early, quickly approaching 25% of the vote eligible population – and there are still 2 days of early voting left. By all accounts, Texas’ 2004 record early voting turnout will be shattered this year. Look here at Galveston County turnout numbers and Lubbock turnout, for example. (more…)

Friday, October 24th, 2008

Weekend Voting? Mos Def!

If you were President, what would you do? Well, our friends at GOOD/Video are asking exactly that. If you are one of millions of Americans who would like voting to be more convenient, and you don’t understand why we vote on Tuesday, you are not alone. To find out why, click here.

Check out Mos Def’s response to GOOD/Video when they asked him. At the 1:41 mark, Mos exclaims that folks should vote on the weekend. Right on!

Wednesday, October 22nd, 2008

In AZ, Video Your Vote! Then Watch ‘Em Count It

According to a local news outlet, Your Valley West, Arizona Secretary of State Jan Brewer took another leap towards making Election Day results in Arizona more transparent and accountable by installing multiple webcams inside all of the State’s vote tabulation rooms.

Arizona is one of two States that currently uses state-wide online voting registration system called EZVoter. The implementation of this system makes registering to vote much more convenient, and perhaps most important, allows interoperability between the States’ various databases rendering electronic voter rolls more accurate, more up-to-date, and more manageable by poll workers and election administrators. So, if you are living in Arizona, here is your suggested Election Day itinerary: (more…)

Thursday, May 1st, 2008

Breaking Down Election Day Registration

Election Day Registration is getting more Democratic support. So far States that allow voters to register and vote on the same day have a experienced a spike in turnout. For example, New Hampshire’s Primary turnout was highest of all primaries thus far at 52.4% (up from 44.4% in 2000), and Iowa’s caucus turnout was highest of all caucuses thus far at 16.4% (up from 6.8% in 2000).

A total of eight States have Election Day Registration: New Hampshire, Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Montana, Maine, Wyoming, and Idaho. North Carolina allows same day registration at early voting sites three days before an election but not on Election Day. States with Election Day Registration routinely have turnout at a rate of 10-12 percentage points higher than States that don’t.

While there are some reputable studies purporting that Election Day Registration is not a knight in shining armor, 22 States now have introduced pending legislation in favor of it and more are sure to follow suit. Moreover, a few members of Congress led by Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI) are introducing a bill (top-heavy on the Democratic side of the aisle) in the wake of the Supreme Court’s Indiana Voter ID decision. However, increasing turnout is not a red or blue issue, and when it comes to the sanctity of our elections we should be thinking red, white and blue.

Friday, February 22nd, 2008

Superdelegate System Upgrade

WASHINGTON, D.C — The Democratic Party has publicly and now privately split as to how (and when) Superdelegates should choose to wield their power, and promises to spawn even more divisiveness should the weight of nomination come down on their shoulders. Voters want to know: Will the average citizen ever be able to influence the system of private brokering of Superdelegate votes? (more…)

Tuesday, February 19th, 2008

Today’s Crystal Ball(ots): Rising Turnout Leads into Uncharted Waters

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – I hopped off the campaign trail last week. I thought I needed some space, but I soon found myself yearning for the ebb-and-flow of election energy. Drama among the Democrats, rifts in the Republican base, increasing turnout, and polling percentages… for a political junkie it is all too addicting. Today’s candidate contests are being held in Wisconsin, Hawaii (for the Dems), and Washington (again). (more…)

Sunday, February 17th, 2008

Why Presidents’ Day?

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – The federal holiday officially listed as Washington’s Birthday, in 1971 was shifted to honor both President Lincoln (who was born on February 12th) and President Washington (who was born on February 22nd), resulting in the three-day break on the third weekend of every February. (more…)

Saturday, February 9th, 2008

Today’s Crystal Ball(ots)

NEW YORK, NEW YORK — The 2008 nominating contests are highly contested and are attracting record turnout levels in State after State. Candidates are doing their best to maintain this upward trend in turnout; however, Republican turnout is sure to falter after Super Tuesday’s results.

For the Democrats, in this spectacle horse race, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton continue to inspire new voters (more…)

Thursday, February 7th, 2008

Romney’s Interstitial Disconnect

NEW YORK, NEW YORK — Mitt Romney just announced the end of his bid for the Republican nomination. In today’s political climate, big money and high-paid consultants alone do not make the grade. Successful campaigns and candidates must be multi-dimensional in order to woo multi-media oriented voters.

In that vein, Romney and his staff never came to grips with what voters were looking for in a President. (more…)

Why Tuesday? is a non-partisan, nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization founded in 2005 to find solutions to increase voter turnout and participation in elections.

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Recent Comments

  • Tom Chees: Why can’t we vote by computer? This would eliminate the voting machines,the people to moniter them...
  • bob sagar: We should vote on Sunday just to annoy all the god botherers.
  • Jacob Soboroff: Hey Bob, search “voter participation” when you get to the Google Moderator page and...
  • Bob Richard: I’d vote for your question if I could, but I can’t find it in the list. And I’ve been...
  • Jack McCullough: I support the idea of increasing election participation, but I think most of these efforts are...