End registration problems. Demand reform.

The 2008 election brought more voters to the polls than ever before. Unfortunately, hundreds of thousands of eligible Americans were prevented from casting a ballot because of problems with the registration system. Election administration sometimes buckled under the strain of increased registration activities.

Our current voter registration system is to blame for this. Rules that vary wildly by state and limited resources make it difficult, confusing, and sometimes impossible for eligible voters to register and stay registered to vote.

Tell Congress and President-elect Obama we need automatic, permanent registration NOW, to ensure that every eligible American voter is able to cast a meaningful ballot.

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Dear President-elect Obama and Congressional leaders:

Our current voter registration system needs an update. This year, thousands of voters waited in long lines at polling places across the nation only to find their registrations hadn’t been processed, or their names had been purged from voter rolls, or they'd missed deadlines they may not even have been aware of.

Before the momentum of this historic election year ebbs, we must improve our flawed registration system, replacing an opaque, labor-intensive, and tedious process with one that's modern, accurate, and efficient. The onus to register new voters shouldn't fall to citizens themselves, or third parties. The government must take responsibility for ensuring all of its citizens are eligible and able to vote.

Election Protection – the nation's largest non-partisan voter protection coalition – reports that about 40% of the complaints they've received about the voting process in 2008 have had to do with registration problems.

Under automatic and permanent registration:

* Every citizen would be automatically registered to vote when they become eligible – either through birth or naturalization – and that registration would follow them throughout their lives, updated as they move from state to state. If there's a problem with the list, a voter can correct it on Election Day.

* Many of the voting problems seen in this election cycle, like overused provisional ballots and registration backlogs, would be eliminated. It would also ensure that no one is disenfranchised because of a failure of the voter registration system or a missed registration deadline.

* People could update their registration address when they change their mailing address with the U.S. Postal Service. One of the most common problems caused by our current system is that people don’t bother to re-register – or don't know that it's required – when they move.

Automatic and permanent registration is a secure and accurate way to maintain voter registration databases, and a simple upgrade to our systems that won't create big and expensive new bureaucracies. It will also take the great weight of last minute voter registration off of election officials, providing them with the critical time and resources around an election to prevent other problems like under trained poll workers and issues with resource distribution.

Americans deserve a voting system that is modern, fair and accurate. Automatic voter registration won't fix everything, but it's an important first step towards ensuring that every eligible vote is cast and counted.

Please make Automatic Voter Registration a priority today.