Ballotpedia.org: The Encyclopedia of American Politics

Hi All,

For those folks who are interested in politics I just learned about a website called Ballotpedia.  Click here to visit the site.  Advertised at the 'Encyclopedia of American Politics' the site has links to Elections (Ballot information, Elections Results, Election Analysis), Federal and State and Local Elections. Links to policy issues, links to 'Influencer's, and a section on Updates.

Visiting the Federal Politics link leads you to a map of the United States.  This part of the site includes Special elections to the 114th Congress, House of Representatives Elections in 2016, Senate Elections and the 2016 presidential election.

Other useful parts of the site is the Ballott Measures section.   Statewide measures, local ballott measures and unique reports can be found here. For example, local ballot measures discussed include marijuana, the minimum wage, fracking, law enforcement and more.

The 'Influencers' page is very, very insightful.  It includes 'influencers' on a national, state and local level.  Influencers are also organized by 'policy' for users to navigate more easily.

Whatever your political persuasion, there is something here for everybody on the site.  Enjoy Ballotpedia - its got unique information that is well organized, easy to find and interesting to read.

Regards,
Stu

Voting and Elections

Hi All,

Here's another election post - short and sweet!  Click on the links below to get the various pieces of information needed!  All your elections and voting needs are now in one place!

Decide Who to Vote For


Find Your State or Local Election Office Website

How to Vote 

Presidential Election Process

Voter Registration, Requirements, and Deadlines

Voting and Election Laws and History

Remember that the election is on Tuesday, November 8th, 2016!!!

Regards,
Stu

Politics and Facts

Hi All,

Now that election season is starting to kick into high-gear, readers might want to check the facts that various candidates are talking about.  Forthwith, two unbiased, useful, and easy-to-use sites to separate the wheat from the chaff when politicians are talking.

RealClearPolitics
The 'About' page on the RealClearPolitics page says that it is 'the trusted, non-partisan, convener in a content-rich media environment; thoughtfully curating the best coverage from every angle of the day's most critical issues. As a destination for elected officials, opinion leaders and engaged citizens, RealClearPolitics provides a platform, elevating the best-of-the-best in journalism.'

There are links to Polls, Election 2016, Video, Articles and much, much more. 

FactCheck.org
The 'About Us' page on the FactCheck.org page says that it is 'a nonpartisan, nonprofit 'consumer advocate' for voters that aims to reduce the level of deception and confusion in U.S. politics.  We monitor the factual accuracy of what is said by major U.S. political players in the form of TV ads, debates, speeches, interviews and news releases.  Our goal is to apply the best practices of both journalism and scholarship, and to increase public knowledge and understanding.'

There are links to Articles, Ask FactCheck, 2016 Elections, Viral Spiral, Archives and much, much more.  The link to 2016 Elections has a drop down menu with links to Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. 

Enjoy the sites and the information.

Regards,
Stu

Elections, Politics and Voting

Hi All,

Just a quickie post about elections and politics. As if you don't know already that we are in an election year!  We are.

For some perspective readers might like visit this link from the Washington Post.  The article is titled, 'A handful of states will decide the next president. One candidate has the edge.'

And no, I am not endorsing one candidate over another. Especially in such an important and controversial presidential election.

However, I will link to several use friendly websites that explain the electoral system, how to register to vote in New York State and links to the Democratic National Convention and to the Republican National Convention.  Click on the various links above to arrive at the sites you chose!

Enjoy the sites and the links.

Regards,
Stu

Superdelegates, Delegates and Voting

Hi All,

The election season is well upon us - that's for sure.  And no, I'm not going to stump for one politician or another. That would probably be hazardous to my health!

However, I just read about superdelegates, delegates and the current elections.

Read on for more about superdelegates and why they are important to our election system!

Superdelegate article from AOL.com
Superdelegates from Wikipedia 
List of Democratic Party Superdelegates 

Enjoy the links - and by the way - republicans do NOT have superdelegates - read about that in the first article listed above!

Regards,
Stu

How Elections Work

Hi All,

Now that the presidential election season is in full swing its a great time to learn a bit about elections.  It is a timely, relevant and important topic.

Go figure - for an concise, interesting summary of how the 2016 election works readers can visit the BBC website for an interesting article titled 'US election 2016: How does it all work?'  The YouTube equivalent can be found by clicking on this link.  Its a 5 minute video and introduces students to the key features of elections, democracy and representation in the United States.

For another slant users can click on these next two links:
LibraryPoint.org - How Presidential Elections Work
Votesmart.org - Government 101 - the United States Presidential Primary

I hope the links help you figure out how the presidential election season works!

Regards,
Stu

Voting and Elections

Hi All,

There is a general elections tomorrow - Tuesday, November 3rd, 2015.  Click on this link from the Nassau County Board of Elections to learn more about the voting 

Topics on the page include: How to Register to Vote,  Voting by Absentee Ballot, Voter Registration Search, Frequently Asked Questions, New Voting Machine Instructions, and more.

The link on the page that I thought would be most relevant is the Voter Registration Search page.   Only registered voters of New York State can access the information on this page.  When the user enters the last name, first name, date of birth, county and zip code on the page, the regular polling place information is found.

Users have the option to get directions from this page as well.  Also, voter district information is found. For example, election district, senate district, congressional district, war, county legislative district, assembly district and town information is given.  All in all its a very useful page for voters to look at before the election.

Finally, click on this link for books at the Farmingdale Public Library that deal with voting and elections. 

Enjoy the links and remember to vote!

Regards,
Stu 

American Presidency Project

Hi All,

The President of the United States is commonly thought of as being 'the Leader of the Free World'.  As such, leaders of the free world should have their own website filled with data, documents, election material and more.  One site that fills this need admirably is the 'American Presidency Project' - which I'll talk about in todays blog entry.

Hosted by the University of California at Santa Barbara, the site has a wealth of primary material for students, researchers and the just-plain interested folks in the various US presidents.  Click on this link for access to the site - which is free and very well organized. 

The American Presidency Project was established in 1999 and the archives contains over 104,400 documents related to the study of the Presidency.  The scope of the archives is vast - so if you are interested in 'anything Presidential' expect to spend a lot of time on the site.

For example, the APP (American Presidency Project hereafter) is the only online resource that has consolidated, coded, and organized the material into a single searchable database.  Click on this link to search the APP archives. When you visit this link, on the lift side of the page you'll find a box with the 'Ten Most Viewed Documents' - which by itself is darn interesting.

From the main page, users have access to:
- Presidential data - examples of categories include, 'Presidential Popularity', 'Public Appearances' and 'State of the Union and Inaugural Address Charts' and more.
- Presidential documents - includes 'Messages and Papers of the Presidents', 'Public Papers of the Presidents', 'News Conferences', 'Executive Orders' and much, much more.
- Presidential election information - includes Presidential Elections data in a very, very digestible and understandable manner.  Sorted by Presidential Election year, each link has state by state talley's for the candidates. Links to the Federal Election Commission are included as well!
- Presidential links is where users can connect to the various Presidential Libraries that exist.  Simple table - easy interface to use.

Click on this link for the Media Archive which contains audio and videos of the various Presidents.

So there you have it. A wonderfully well organized, accurate, unbiased, easily accessible website for 'all things Presidential'.

Enjoy the links and the information.
Regards,
Stu

Election Day is Coming...Some Thoughts

Hi All, 

As you probably know, election day is right around the corner.  And with that thought in mind, you might want to prepare to vote.  Here are some important links for voters to use to answer a bunch of voting related questions that they might have...

Without further ado...

Enjoy the links!
Stu

When is the next election?

http://www.elections.ny.gov/

How can I see if I am registered to vote?

https://voterlookup.elections.state.ny.us/votersearch.aspx

What are the qualifications to register to vote?

http://www.elections.ny.gov/VotingRegister.html

Where can I find a Voter Registration form?

http://www.elections.ny.gov/NYSBOE/download/voting/voteform.pdf

Where can I find an Absentee ballot?

http://www.elections.ny.gov/NYSBOE/download/voting/Absentee06152010.pdf

What are the requirements to run for President?

http://www.elections.ny.gov/RunningOffice.html

Who are my United States Senators?

http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm?State=NY

Who is my United States Representative?

http://www.house.gov/representatives/find/

Who is my New York State Senator?

http://www.nysenate.gov/senators/

Who is my representative in the New York State Assembly?

http://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/

How can someone in the military vote?

http://www.fvap.gov/

When is the deadline for registering to vote?

http://www.elections.ny.gov/VotingDeadlines.html

Where may I apply in person to register to vote?

http://www.elections.ny.gov/VotingRegister.html

http://www.elections.ny.gov/CountyBoards.html

When are the polls open on Election Day?

http://www.elections.ny.gov/FAQ.html

Where do I go to vote?

https://voterlookup.elections.state.ny.us/votersearch.aspx