Vermont has just taken another important step towards getting more eligible Vermonters registered to vote. On Thursday, Secretary of State Jim Condos announced the roll out of a new online voter registration system.
Thanks to this new system, Vermonters can easily register to vote from home or wherever they access the internet, continuing to make voter registration more convenient and accessible. They can also check their registration status, change important details like name or address, and request an absentee ballot.
But that’s not all – according to VT Digger, Condos and Gov. Peter Shumlin are both supportive of automatic voter registration (also known as motor voter registration), which allows voters to opt-out of registration, rather than opt-in. Condos said that he would propose rules in the upcoming legislative session similar to those in Oregon and California, two states with automatic voter registration.
We know that the more people who vote, the stronger our democracy is. And while voter registration is only part of the picture, the fewer barriers that Vermonters have to register, the better.