Gov. Chris Sununu aims to inspire a revival of civics education nationwide as surveys show Americans lack a solid understanding of just how our government works.

The governor recently signed legislation prioritizing civics instruction, which has been shown to improve school climates, increase volunteerism and the likelihood students will become voters.

Maria Manus Painchaud, interim executive director of the nonprofit New Hampshire Civics, said a better understanding of democracy helps increase civility.

"Even if I don't necessarily agree with you when you have a different suggestion, maybe collaboratively we can come up with an even better solution," Painchaud emphasized.

Painchaud stressed parents are especially encouraged to take part in the governor's free public event tonight at the Audi in Concord, where he'll discuss ways to improve our overall civic health.

Most civics education disappeared from public schools as the "No Child Left Behind Act" turned the focus to STEM education. Decades later, a majority of Democrats and Republicans said reviving civics learning could help Americans learn to communicate again.

Painchaud argued at a cost of just five cents per student, civics is a wise investment.

"We are a very fortunate nation to be living in a democracy and have the freedoms that we have," Painchaud acknowledged. "But we also need to nurture, maintain and make sure that we sustain them."

Painchaud pointed out experiential learning such as mock debates or interacting with public officials all build important life skills, such as listening or creative problem-solving. She added not only does civics education promote better students, but better future employees and, most importantly, engaged and informed citizens.

Legislation in Virginia would prohibit any systematic removals of people from voter rolls at least 90 days before an election.

Last August, Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed an executive order requiring daily updates to voter rolls, instead of monthly. The Department of Motor Vehicles found more than 6,000 people marked as noncitizens were registered to vote in Virginia.

Voting rights advocates countered people may accidentally check the box saying they are not a citizen or they have gained citizenship between DMV visits.

Sheila Herlihy Hennessee, director of faith organizing at the Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy, said purges so close to elections affect people across the Commonwealth.

"This affects rural areas. This affects new Americans. This affects a lot of people around Virginia, and I want to see our legislators protect those individuals," Herlihy Hennessee outlined. "This has the legs to be a bipartisan issue."

Youngkin has defended his executive order as necessary to protect election security. The Trump administration recently dropped a lawsuit against the daily updates initiated during President Joe Biden's tenure.

The legislation is one of a flurry of other election-related bills passed by the General Assembly. Others would extend deadlines to return mail-in ballots and extend voter registration periods. Herlihy Hennessee noted some people may just not vote if these purges take place too near an election, which makes a "quiet period" essential.

"Having these 'quiet periods' before an election gives folks time to double-check their registration, to prove their citizenship, to reregister if that's needed if they are accidentally taken off the rolls," Herlihy Hennessee explained. "That quiet period also ensures that registrars have accurate lists of eligible voters."

Youngkin has yet to announce whether he will veto the bill or sign it into law.

Support for this reporting was provided by The Carnegie Corporation of New York.


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Absentee ballot restrictions and shortening the amount of time it takes to purge inactive voters from the voting rolls are priorities for West Virginia lawmakers this session.

Senate Bill 487, which now heads to the governor's desk, removes ineligible voters from the active roles after two years of inactivity, rather than four.

Rusty Williams, advocacy director for the ACLU of West Virginia, said the volume of legislation this year aimed at changing the way elections are conducted in the state is alarming.

"Especially when we have folks in southern West Virginia still trying to clean up from some historic and devastating flooding, you would think that would be the priority," Williams contended.

The West Virginia House also passed House Bill 2117, which would shorten the ballot return period by requiring ballots be received by 7:30 p.m. on Election Day, rather than being postmarked on or before Election Day.

Supporters of the bills argue they would reduce voter fraud and election discrepancies. This week, Gov. Patrick Morrisey also signed a bill banning ranked choice voting.

Williams explained House Bill 2117 places tighter restrictions on absentee ballots, noting people would no longer be able to hand out ballot applications in places such as nursing homes or libraries.

"Giving it to folks unsolicited could put you in a position where you could be found guilty of a misdemeanor, and fined $500 and put in jail for six months," Williams outlined. "Again, we're talking about a public document here."

Williams believes state lawmakers should focus on reinstating voting rights to people coming out of prison, on probation or supervised release.

"Unfortunately, that has been an incredibly uphill battle," he acknowledged. "We're continuing to fight on a daily basis."

According to the Sentencing Project, more than 15,000 Mountain State residents are barred from voting because of a felony conviction.

Support for this reporting was provided by The Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Many Texans feel strongly, one way or another, about the proposed school voucher bill before state lawmakers. Gov. Greg Abbott has proposed a plan to provide $10,000 vouchers to parents to help cover the cost of private schools.

Christina Sanders, founder of the nonprofit PoliChic Engagement Fund, said taxpayers should pay close attention to the details of the policy.

"Taking that money away from schools and forcing our districts to shut down schools and forcing teachers to not be able to have living wages. So just the school conversation in general is something that people should really pay attention to," she explained.

Hundreds of Texas school teachers spent their spring break testifying before lawmakers against the bill. They say vouchers will take needed funds away from public schools. The governor says vouchers give parents the freedom to make the best education choices for their children and will benefit students from low-income households.

Sanders says whether it's school choice or another issue before the legislature, the public should remember that lawmakers work for them, and you have the right to voice your opinion.

"Showing up and holding people accountable that work for you, which is your representative, and ensuring that they are putting resources where you would like them to go is the whole point of a representative republic," Sanders said.

GOP lawmakers tried unsuccessfully to pass school vouchers in the last legislative session.

Sanders said the session is available online and people can also contact representatives by email, phone, or on social media.

"Our organization can help prepare any individual who wants to testify and just tell their story and publicly talk about and share with the committee that's making the decision about what their ideas are and what their experience has been and what they'd like to see," Sanders concluded.