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Tag: Voter registration

Grays Harbor 1970s poll workers
How the 1970 election set Washington’s midterm turnout record

How the 1970 election set Washington’s midterm turnout record

The county-certified election returns for the 2018 General Election came very near setting a new state record for voter participation in a non-Presidential election cycle. Of the 4,362,454 people on Washington’s voter rolls, 71.83 percent cast ballots, which was just under the 71.85 percent turnout for the 1970 midterm General Election. Had just 1,101 more Washingtonians voted, that 48-year-old record would have been eclipsed. That the 1970 turnout stands as the state’s high-water mark is noteworthy in several regards. First, the record…

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Washington sets a record with National Voter Registration Day 2018

Washington sets a record with National Voter Registration Day 2018

Since 2012, elections officials across America have made National Voter Registration Day an annual focal point of public-awareness campaigns to get more eligible citizens to register to vote. In Washington, as in other states, the effort has concentrated largely on getting young adults to sign up as registered voters. This demographic is targeted for two key reasons: First, the U.S. Census Bureau regularly finds that young people who are eligible to vote are registered at much lower rates than citizens in older…

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Gov. Inslee and Sec. Wyman
Student Voter registration challenge 2018

Student Voter registration challenge 2018

To encourage as many young adults as possible to make their voices heard in the 2018 General Election, Secretary of State Kim Wyman and Gov. Jay Inslee have launched a special Student Voter Registration Challenge to sign up Washington’s college students as new voters. As Gov. Inslee’s office describes here, the Student Voter Registration Challenge is a competition open to students at all 40 of Washington’s public universities, community colleges, and technical colleges. Student teams must register by Aug. 1 to…

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WA voter reg sets a one-day record; total now tops 4.2m

WA voter reg sets a one-day record; total now tops 4.2m

Voter registrations in Washington hit a new one-day record on Monday, the deadline for online and mail-in registration. In that single day, 27,601 signed up online via the Secretary of State’s MyVote.wa.gov. That broke the previous record set just a day earlier, 23,167. Before that, the all-time one-day record was set last spring, 13,109, with help from Facebook prompts. The number of registered voters now stands at 4,207,379. It’s the first time we’ve exceeded 4.2 million. We celebrated our four…

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Reminder: Oct. 10 is WA voter-reg deadline

Reminder: Oct. 10 is WA voter-reg deadline

A reminder that Monday, Oct. 10, is the deadline for online and mail-in voter registration ahead of the General Election. Secretary Wyman and the state Elections Director Lori Augino said Tuesday that county election departments will also honor mail-in applications with an Oct. 11 postmark. The Oct. 10 deadline could have been a problem for some who are registering by mail, since that is a federal holiday and the post office will not process or postmark on that day or…

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Secretary Wyman, auditors propose election reforms

Secretary Wyman, auditors propose election reforms

Secretary of State Kim Wyman and county election leaders have announced a bipartisan proposal to clear the way to check for citizenship of people who want to register and vote in Washington. At a news conference in Spokane on Friday, Wyman and county partners proposed legislation for the upcoming session that would adopt the REAL ID Act for Washington. That would mean people would have to present citizenship verification to get a driver’s license, and election administrators could then do…

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Facebook helps spread the word: Register to vote!

Facebook helps spread the word: Register to vote!

Facebook has launched an internet drive to prompt people to register to vote, including many in Washington. From Friday through Monday, Sept. 26, people on Facebook who are 18 and older will get a reminder at the top of their news feed urging them to get registered to vote – or if they already are registered, to remind their FB friends to do so. Secretary of State  Kim Wyman, the state’s chief elections official, said Washington could set a single-day…

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WA Elections Division reaching out to 140k potential voters

WA Elections Division reaching out to 140k potential voters

Washington’s state Elections Division is sending out postcards to 140,000 state residents who appear eligible to vote, but haven’t yet registered. Many of the cards will go to new 18 year olds and to millennials between 19 and 35. The mailings will have a catchy, humorous graphic and information on how to quickly register online by Oct. 10. About 21,000 will go to 18 year olds and 72,000 to those 19-35. Eligible but unregistered 18 year olds will receive this…

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WA General Election voting kicks off this week

WA General Election voting kicks off this week

Washington’s General Election voting season gets under way in just a few days, with counties sending ballots to over 72,000 military and overseas voters around the globe. Federal law provides extra transit time for military and overseas voters, with counties required to send out ballots 45 days before Election Day. This year, that’s Saturday, Sept. 24. A number of soldiers and others have also requested electronic versions. Still others use federal write-in ballots via the Federal Voting Assistance Program at…

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WA voters: 4 million strong!

WA voters: 4 million strong!

  Secretary of State Kim Wyman and Pierce County Auditor Julie Anderson headlined an event to celebrate a milestone: Washington has surpassed 4 million registered voters for the first time in state history. During the ceremony at Anderson’s offices in Tacoma on Monday, Wyman and Anderson introduced the 4 millionth voter, 18-year-old Katarina Gruber of Pierce County. Gruber went to Pierce County Elections on her birthday in late March to register to vote in person. “This is a big moment…

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