Florida Legislature Passes Bill for On-Line Voter Registration

Posted on by April 30, 2015
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On April 29, the Florida legislature passed SB 228 Committee Substitute, which lets individuals register to vote on-line. Here is the text of the bill. The process is entirely electronic for applicants who already have a Florida drivers license or state I.D. card. If the individual does not, then the system prompts the applicant to print out a form, sign it, and mail it in.

The Secretary of State, Ken Detzler, is opposed to the bill. Detzler is appointed by the Governor, Rick Scott. It is not known if the Governor will sign the bill. The bill passed overwhelmingly in both houses of the legislature.

Washington Special Legislative Session Opens; Special Session May Pass Presidential Primary Bill

Posted on by April 30, 2015
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The regular session of the Washington legislature ended earlier, with no legislation passing that would revive the 2016 presidential primary. But a special session opened on April 29, and on that first day of the session, the Senate again passed SB 5978, which would create a March primary. It is not very likely that the House will pass the bill, but it is possible. Thanks to Josh Putnam for this news.

Illinois Initiative for Nonpartisan Legislative Districting

Posted on by April 29, 2015
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Reboot Illinois is about to launch a petition drive to place an initiative on the November 2016 ballot that would set up a nonpartisan commission to draw legislative district boundaries. See this story. The group tried in 2014 but did not get enough signatures. The Constitution requires approximately 290,000 valid signatures. The group will attempt to collect 600,000. The proposed initiative would only concern legislative districts, not U.S. House districts.