Provisional Voting :: essays research papers

Part I: Current Social Issues One social issue in my community that concerns me is that of provisional voting, which is proving to be an issue in many communities. The requirement that all states make provisional voting available was passed down by congress. Unfortunately, no guidelines were included with this requirement, and therefore the decisions on which provisional votes are counted and which ones are not differ not only from state to state but from county to county. As a result, provisional voting is beneficial to some and not to others. The main agencies involved with this issue would be the local election offices as well as the secretaries of state. Part II: Relevant Agencies Quite obviously, the main agency that would be involved with the issue of provisional voting is the local elections office. This agency devotes great energies to make sure that every member of the public is given the opportunity to cast their votes. Because this is the agency that determines whether or not each provisional vote will count, these are the individuals that play the most major roll. The Secretary of State’s office is also like to be involved in provisional voting. Each state is expected to be responsible for drawing up guidelines for the procedures to be followed for provisional voting. At present time, the guidelines are unclear, if existent at all, but at some point must be addressed by the Secretary of State. The local elections office and the Secretary of State represent the government sector. The final organization that I expect to see involved with provisional voting are the pollworkers. These are the individuals that volunteer their time on election day to officiate the polls where votes are cast. Since provisional voting is still quite new, the procedures can be somewhat confusing, and it is these people that must make sense of it. I would classify them as being part of the philanthropic sector. Part III: Final Paper Topic The issue I have chosen to further develop for my final paper is that of provisional voting and the guidelines by which the decisions are made as to which provisional votes will be counted and which will not. I have chosen to pursue this particular issue due to the fact that I work as an Elections Coordinator and I have recently experienced my first election from behind the scenes, so to speak. Provisional voting is a serious issue, required by Congress, but handed down with little or no guidelines. Provisional Voting :: essays research papers Part I: Current Social Issues One social issue in my community that concerns me is that of provisional voting, which is proving to be an issue in many communities. The requirement that all states make provisional voting available was passed down by congress. Unfortunately, no guidelines were included with this requirement, and therefore the decisions on which provisional votes are counted and which ones are not differ not only from state to state but from county to county. As a result, provisional voting is beneficial to some and not to others. The main agencies involved with this issue would be the local election offices as well as the secretaries of state. Part II: Relevant Agencies Quite obviously, the main agency that would be involved with the issue of provisional voting is the local elections office. This agency devotes great energies to make sure that every member of the public is given the opportunity to cast their votes. Because this is the agency that determines whether or not each provisional vote will count, these are the individuals that play the most major roll. The Secretary of State’s office is also like to be involved in provisional voting. Each state is expected to be responsible for drawing up guidelines for the procedures to be followed for provisional voting. At present time, the guidelines are unclear, if existent at all, but at some point must be addressed by the Secretary of State. The local elections office and the Secretary of State represent the government sector. The final organization that I expect to see involved with provisional voting are the pollworkers. These are the individuals that volunteer their time on election day to officiate the polls where votes are cast. Since provisional voting is still quite new, the procedures can be somewhat confusing, and it is these people that must make sense of it. I would classify them as being part of the philanthropic sector. Part III: Final Paper Topic The issue I have chosen to further develop for my final paper is that of provisional voting and the guidelines by which the decisions are made as to which provisional votes will be counted and which will not. I have chosen to pursue this particular issue due to the fact that I work as an Elections Coordinator and I have recently experienced my first election from behind the scenes, so to speak. Provisional voting is a serious issue, required by Congress, but handed down with little or no guidelines.