The "Election Overtime" Project
Background
Belief in the fairness of elections depends heavily on understanding the rules involved. In our trial system, some verdicts get debated, but most people know the ground rules like “innocent until proven guilty,” and that creates a baseline of trust. In sports, allegations of rigging are remarkably rare, in part because fans know the rules so well.
This core understanding is lacking for elections, particularly elections that are close and challenged in court—that essentially "go into overtime." The procedures that verify results in a close race are rarely described and little-known. Most Americans don't realize that courts are an inherent part of the election cycle, the venue where fair judgment can be rendered in a dispute. It's not intuitive to many that an election can only be “proven flawed” with evidence of wrongdoing affecting more votes than the margin of victory.
Journalists play a key role in this dynamic. The demand for attention-grabbing headlines can incentivize exaggeration and simplification when what we need for public trust is careful attention to the rules and laws.
A Solution
Election Reformers Network and the Bridge Alliance created the Election Overtime Project to help reporters, journalists, TV anchors and others handle close and contested elections. Following a successful pilot program in 2022, the program will focus on six battleground states for 2024 and include the following elements:
1) State-specific guides for reporters on covering close and contested elections;
2) Webinars led by experts in election law, election court cases, and court reporting; and
3) Speaker bureaus for informed commentary.
4) Litigation monitoring, if races review judicial involvement
5) An ‘Election Overtime’ series of news and commentary in The Fulcrum, a "solutions journalism" publication focused on American governance
Content Partners
As in 2022, we will work closely with secretaries of state and election experts to ensure precision in our policy briefs. (Example here.)
Distribution Partners
We will leverage prior work supporting local news funds to access broad networks of journalists. Other distribution partners will include national reform organizations, state and local election offices, state bar associations, and left- and right-leaning community organizations.
Tested impact
Recent research demonstrates large increases in trust from education about how election officials check and verify results.
How to get involved:
For Journalists and news organizations. Click here to receive program materials and event invitations. The program is tailored toward those covering elections in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, New Mexico, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, so individuals and organizations focused on those states are particularly encouraged to sign up. Those focused on other states are welcome as well and will likely draw lessons relevant to their states.
For civic organizations. We welcome hearing from and partnering with organizations supporting elections and the rule of law, particularly those active in the target states. Please contact us by email at info@electionreformers.org. Civic organizations can partner with this program by reaching out to their journalist networks, and by proposing additional content resources. Also, though the guides and webinars are designed for journalists, we are happy to make them available for organizations for use with their outreach to citizens.
For concerned citizens. We rely on public support for this and all our programs. Please considering helping us reach our funding target, contributions can be made online here. THANK YOU!!