Author: Genya Coulter

If anybody had told me last year I’d have accurately predicted 90% of the events leading up to the special election, I’d probably have asked them what kind of acid they dropped.

Median household income in CA-25 When I initially covered the CA-25 primary and special primary this past January, just about every political analyst had Christy Smith easily winning by 51%, avoiding a runoff election against the media-projected opponent of either Cenk Uygur or former CA-25 representative Steve Knight. While the polling certainly supported that projection, it became apparent that few of the analysts, pollsters, Twitter accounts, or traditional media covering the race actually lived in CA-25. I predicted Mike Garcia would knock Steve Knight out of the special and regular primaries, keep Christy Smith out of the 51% threshold for…

A competent Secretary of State is worth their weight in gold. The ones that do their job well can outlast the administration they started with, but those who fall short can cost a state their reputation and millions of dollars in legal fees. It is not a position to be held by the lazy, the careless, or the irresponsible. It’s definitely not a job for folks sensitive to criticism. In Washington state, the primary responsibility of the Secretary of State is to serve as “Keeper Of The Seal”. While that description sounds like it came straight out of a YA…

Can elections be canceled or delayed? Find out in this week’s edition of Ask ElectionBabe!

The politics of CA-25 change direction much like the Santa Ana winds shift through the canyons and mountain passes: warm and pleasant most of the time, but can ignite a firestorm and scorch the Earth with just one spark. Drive up the 5 freeway past where the 405 terminates, and marvel at just how many TV shows and movies use the stunning foothills and generic upper middle class suburban developments as backdrops. Head northeast on the 14 freeway and watch the desolate high desert cities morph from a haven for biker gangs, white supremacists, and eccentric scientists who build geodesic…

There have been a lot of stories about voter purges in the news. Why do voters get purged, and how do I make sure that I don’t get purged in 2020? First, let me explain what a voter purge is: It is the process of removing a voter from the state/local voter registration databases in compliance with the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) of 1993. The NVRA, otherwise known as the motor-voter law, allowed people to register to vote or update their voter record while getting a driver’s license, enlisting in the military, applying for public benefits, or participating in…

I Voted stickers. The ultimate badge of democracy.What is voter suppression, and do you think the term is used too casually? Voter suppression is an umbrella term used to define multiple ways that artificially lower (suppress) the number/demographic categories of voters eligible to vote in an election.Some voter suppression is blatantly obvious and intentional-literacy tests, physically intimidating voters, purging voter registrations, overly restrictive Voter ID laws, failure to comply with the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA), permanent disenfranchisement of convicted felons, conspicuous presence of law enforcement in and around polling places, and deliberately providing incorrect information about where and when…

Genya Coulter, aka. ElectionBabe, answers your questions on pollworkers and elections. Who are they, and what do they do?