Voting is a fundamental right and a cornerstone of our democracy, yet too many Americans have had their right to vote denied because of poor administrative policies. In California, felons who are eligible voters are too often prevented from casting a ballot because of poorly kept voter rolls. That shouldn't be the case. Let's fix this problem and ensure every eligible voter can participate in our democracy.

Dear [ Decision Maker ] ,

Voting is a fundamental right that should be protected for every eligible citizen. It should not be denied due to poor administrative procedures. I support AB 742, which would increase accuracy on the voter rolls and ensure that eligible citizens will be listed on the voter rolls that officials rely on at polling stations across the state.

This legislation is necessary to correct poor administrative procedures that have encouraged voting officials to remove felons off the voting rolls, whether or not they are qualified to vote.

Come election time, the result can be seen at polling stations across the state. All too often, those who are eligible to vote show up at polling stations, but get turned away by officials who rely on voting rolls from which felons have been removed even though they are eligible to vote.

This bill would not change who is eligible to vote. It would merely correct poor record keeping. But more importantly, it would secure one of our state's most fundamental principles: that everyone who is an eligible citizen should be given the opportunity to partake in our democracy.

I am urging you to sign this bill. Its voter administration procedure would save time for registrars who would no longer need to research who to purge from their voter removal list. While research indicates that numerous counties have already implemented this efficient administrative procedure, many election clerks have not. At no fault of their own, election clerks in Alpine, Colusa, Lake, Kings, Marin, Placer, Plumas, San Bernardino, Tuolumne, and Ventura counties, do not receive usable lists of who to purge from voter rolls. This bill would assist these and other counties to comply with current law.

More importantly this bill would safeguard against voter disenfranchisement. Please, protect everyone's rights in our great state.

Sincerely,

Campaign Launched:
September 15, 2009