Publications

Why can't there be enough food, shelter, jobs, health care, homes, schools, education, safety and security for everyone? How can people work together to challenge the way things are, to help redistribute wealth and power, to create a more just and humane society?

The answer is Creative Community Organizing

Authors R. Michael Alvarez (California Institute of Technology) and Jonathan Nagler (New York University) have analyzed the likely impact on voter turnout should Maryland adopt Same Day Registration (SDR). Under the system proposed in Maryland, eligible voters who miss the current 21-day deadline for registering may be able to register to vote during the state's 7-day early voting period, or on Election Day. Consistent with existing research on the impact of SDR in the other states that use this process, the authors find that SDR would likely lead to substantial increases in voter turnout.

The time has come for the creation of a Consumer Financial Protection Agency. For thirty years, Washington has been captive to a governing philosophy that eschewed regulation in almost any form, arguing that the hand of government was best kept behind its back. But the era of deregulated finance has shown that without public structures to ensure accountability and fairness, the system can not sustain itself. The result of this failed experiment in deregulation has been a crisis costing Americans $11 trillion in family wealth, $14 trillion in taxpayer bailouts and over 8 million jobs.

While the United States has come a long way in expanding the franchise over the past 220 years, barriers to participation still exist and these barriers disproportionately impact low-income citizens. In 2008, over 11 million low-income adult citizens remained unregistered to vote and the registration between low-income and high-income citizens was over 19 percentage points.

Research by Demos and its partners demonstrates that the compliance gaps found in states such as Missouri, North Carolina and Virginia reflect a nationwide problem.

The benefits of EDR are clear, and Demos' research has shown that implementation is relatively simple and cost-effective. The consensus among officials in EDR states is that Election Day Registration actually makes the election process easier to administer, as it reduces or eliminates the need for provisional ballots and mitigates pre-deadline surges in registrations.

Based on interviews with town, city or county clerks and full-time election administrators, Demos has put together a "how-to guide" on EDR implementation and administration for election officials and policymakers in states and localities where it is being considered.

Demos, in collaboration with a variety of environmental groups, including the Sierra Club, helped prepare the following testimony presented at the House Ways and Means Committee hearing on the operation, impact, and future of U.S. trade preference programs, arguing for inclusion of environmental criteria.