whose vote counts, explained transcript

Always having to provide proof of residence when you register to vote. The series consists of three half-hour episodes: "The Right to Vote," "Can You Buy an Election?," and "Whose Vote Counts." The first one, narrated by Leonardo DiCaprio, analyzes voter suppression. It's an African American community. Transcript Whose Vote Counts View film JELANI COBB, Correspondent: I'm a journalist and historian. HENRY "HANK" SANDERS, (D) Alabama state senator, 1982-2018: It says that any time the laws were changed dealing with voting, they had to first be submitted to the attorney general of the United States or submitted to a three-judge district court in Washington, D.C. The United States Postal Service lacks much-needed funding, leaving voters feeling uncertain about mailing their ballots. It's a very bad system. Why should Meade and others like him have had to lobby the government to let them vote? Look who, right there. Many people in the U.S. feel that their vote will not matter because of how politicians rig elections in favor of their party. We are simultaneously faced with a global pandemic, climate change, systemic racism/inequality, and a lack of competent leadership in the White House. So you have polling locations across the state, and they're all local, so in these smaller communities, we know who the locals are. But as we were making this series, and the election season heated up, we were surprised at the new dimensions they took. Finally, decide how to submit the ballot. By 1985, that number would grow to nearly 4,000. As a divided America prepares to vote and fears of political violence continue, these FRONTLINE documentaries show how U.S. politics reached this moment. If You Need a Refresher, Here's How Recounts Work. So to make sure I understand this clearly, you're saying that voter suppression does not happen in the United States? Netflixs recently released a docu-series made by Vox called Whose Vote Counts, Explained in late September 2020. Today's decision apparently clears the way for several high-profile laws to take effect, including stricter voter ID requirements, in Alabama, Mississippi and Texas. In 2010, Republicans swept the midterm elections. We're talking about uncharted territory tonight, gone from the Democrats to the Republicans. Evers did, you run into a real problem because what you're doing is going toyou're necessarily going to lessen the number of people that vote because of that chaos, because of that confusion. Electing to not vote because you dont agree with the system doesnt do anything to improve it, it only allows for stagnation. Whose Vote Counts, Explained was released on September 28, 2020, on Netflix. A lawyer turned private investigator takes on a missing person case, propelling him on an unexpected and life-altering quest. Voters who started lining up to vote before 7 a.m. were still lining up at midnight Tuesday. Each week, we explore unique solutions to some of the world's biggest problems. Kathy Bernier was elected to the State Assembly the year Gov. Messi v. Mbapp: Is Comparison Killing the Great Soccer Players? In fact, I thought it was completely fair to not have to risk getting COVID-19 by going to vote in person. With Joe Biden projected to win the state by a narrow margin, the Trump Campaign said it would seek a Wisconsin recount. As the country has become more divided, fraud and voter suppression have become part of each party's get-out-the-vote mechanism and inspiration and motivation to get its voters out. And they started bringing all these cases to try to find these cases of voter fraud. For us, 80% of our voters voted by mail, 20% voted in person. This was a significant factor in why he chose to write for Hollywood Insider, as they focus on art and culture over gossip and scandal. All of a sudden the possibility of inclusion began to just grow. I'm not seeing it right now.. I kind of debated back and forth between going to the polls, not going to the polls. The elimination of late-arriving absentee ballots. Netflix and third parties use cookies (why?). Voting by mail is wrought with fraud and abuse and people don't get their ballots. That decision to me felt like voter suppression. Explain how the vote by mail process works. The big state race everyone was keeping an eye on. Videos Whose Vote Counts, Explained Trailer: Whose Vote Counts, Explained Episodes Whose Vote Counts, Explained Limited Series Release year: 2020 The right to vote is at the foundation of America's democracy. For Native Americans, voting rights were hard-won. Kansas voters sided with abortion rights in August. I mean, he even made the most basic error of referring to our database, which is just a sampling of cases. Whose Vote Counts, Explained is an American documentary series that is a three-part limited series that's a part of the larger Explained franchise produced by Vox. Some of the rejected ballots were from one neighborhood: Metcalfe Park. And their fears are well-founded: Based on our review of years of voting records, more than a million votes might go uncounted in the upcoming election. But is France truly ready for a Black president? Funding for FRONTLINE is provided through the support of PBS viewers and by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. In eight states, ballots are mailed to every registered voter. What's being fought over? Here's how recounts work. What they said was that voter fraud does occur in the U.S. and it could make a difference in a close election. Many of the same kinds of problems showed up in other states that held elections in the months that followed. Whose Vote Counts, Explained isn't the only project that dives deep into the U.S. voting system on Tuesday, Amazon made available for free its original documentary All In: The Fight for. The series consists of three half-hour episodes: The Right to Vote, Can You Buy an Election?, and Whose Vote Counts. The first one, narrated by, writes And even when they get the right, legislators (mostly white males) create laws to make it difficult if not impossible for those marginalized populations to actually cast a vote., Lets face it: this upcoming election is unlike any other. We talked to Hans von Spakovsky about this, and he said, "He has no idea what he's talking about. Democrats tend to live in urban areas whereas Republicans live in suburban areas. Whose Vote Counts, Explained is documentaries on Netflix produced by Vox as Netflix special series. I'm not going to feed into what they want us to do, which is not vote. The memorial is informally known as the national lynching museum, and it's filled with thousands of names of Black Americans, many of them killed amid the push for voting rights. . And so when people say "the north side," that's really code for "Black folks." Web Site Copyright 1995-2023 WGBH Educational Foundation. With their constituents at risk from in-person voting, Democrats began pushing for something that would ignite a political firestorm: an absentee ballot drive. The Shelby decision did send a powerful signal, and soon changes to voting laws began taking place all over the countryin Southern states and beyond. Throughout U.S. history, many have fought to extend the right to vote to all adults. That people felt that their vote was being suppressed by having to go out and potentially contract the illness by going to a polling place. Is this David? It was my impression that Jeff Sessions thought that those legal cases would stop Black folks from not only using absentee vote, but would stop Black folks from voting in the numbers that Black people were voting. Photo: Whose Vote Counts Explained/Netflix. The really significant shifts that we began to see were a closure of many of the sites that we used for voting and a mass exodus of our election workers due to concern about the pandemic. On the one hand, Obamas election was the fulfillment of the dreams of those who marched in Selma. States that were notorious for voter suppression now had to get federal approval if they wanted to change any laws regarding voting. Yes, it's true that the leaders of some civil rights organizations and others disagree with that, but the evidence, the facts, the turnout in elections in states that have put in ID laws show that it does not keep people out of the polls. This was a significant factor in why he chose to write for, Every so often, I like to browse the Netflix menu and add things to my list to save for later. You should be able to prove who you are when you go to vote." Take a look at how long the lines already are in Milwaukee of voters waiting to cast their ballots. What the Republicans began in 2011 with voter ID grew and grew. And if there is litigation about the election in November, that litigation is going to end up at the steps of the Wisconsin state Supreme Court. Our starting point: March 17, the day Wisconsin said the coronavirus pandemic would not affect its upcoming primary election, scheduled for just three weeks away. Related article:First Presidential Debates 2020: Joe Biden VS Donald Trump VS Debates Vs Domestic Terrorism, Related article:Donald Trump Attacks Press Freedom, Cops Assault Journalists Bloody, Eugene Kiely and Rem Reider from factcheck.org stated mail ballots will be sent automatically to eligible registered voters in only nine states and the District of Columbia. One of them said, its a rigged game, so dont play. While I agree that the electoral college should be discontinued, I dont think that disagreeing with it justifies somebody not voting. / 54m. When people say "the south side," that's code for "Latinx folks.". We apparently have only, left to start taking climate change seriously, so go research which candidate does and which one doesnt. Tony Evers, a Democrat whod been elected on a razor-thin margin, had wanted to delay. Im running for the Supreme Court to stop. It would take a week for election officials to tally the ballots. Jan. 6, Two Years Later: 10 Documentaries to Watch, How American Politics Reached This Fraught Moment: 12 Documentaries to Watch Ahead of the Midterms, 'Whose Vote Counts' Wins FRONTLINEs Second Peabody Award of 2021, Taking Office in a Time of Crisis: 16 Documentaries on Key Issues Biden Inherits. Most government closed, most businesses closed, but we in the election commission continued to come into work each day. Well, the most important thing for you to understand is it's just a sampling of cases, OK? MELODY McCURTIS, Dep. As the coronavirus upends their lives, two detectives doggedly pursue those responsible for an abduction they realize is part of a sinister pattern. We find them through press releases from law enforcement officials, state attorney generals and others. He said that he felt like his vote didn't matter. The long struggle came to a head in 1965 with the march from Selma to Montgomery, which the future Congressman John Lewis helped organize. What marginalized populations? The 15th amendment, made following the Civil War, defends peoples right to vote from race-based discrimination but said nothing about education, economic status or criminal history. Sending out 80 MILLION BALLOTS to people who arent even asking for a Ballot is unfair and a total fraud in the making. Well, I got interested in this topic in the 1990s, when I was first a poll watcher. And it was just not justified by the facts. Due to past gerrymandering, some states decided to use independent commissions to redraw lines, rather than the legislature. The Electoral College. But he ran into a roadblock with the Republican-controlled Legislature. Or a change in the deadline to request an absentee ballot. I do believe that there is an attack on our democracy right now. Since then, the process has become much more inclusive, but still flawed and unfair. With former Vice President Joe Biden leading Wisconsin by a narrow margin, the local election commission and others respond to the Trump campaign's call for a state recount. Due to biases in the criminal justice system, poll taxes and literacy tests soon became common, preventing many Black and non-English speaking people who could not pass the test or afford the tax from voting. My campaign manager called and he said, "If you're in fleece and jeans," which is what I was in, "You need to put something nicer on because you're about to go on TV, and you're going to be the next justice on the Wisconsin state Supreme Court.". The series consists of three half-hour episodes: The Right to Vote, Can You Buy an Election?, and Whose Vote Counts. The first one, narrated by Leonardo DiCaprio, analyzes voter suppression. As we traveled the state, we met other local officials who had similar concerns about going through with voting. For the three episodes in this series, "The Right to Vote," "Can You Buy an Election . With the election underway, I interviewed both candidates. I can tell you from that experience and being the co-chairman of a presidential commission on election administration in 2013 and 2014, where we looked for this, that the widespread fraud that would allow a conclusion of "elections are rigged" is not there. For the rest of the country, voters have to request a mail-in ballot and give a reason as to why they cannot vote in person; in four states, the pandemic is not a valid reason to vote by mail. It's a lot of names on here that are pretty active in the community that we're in a relationship with. I thought, "Im going to have some problems, how am I going to solve them?" Can anything change Americans minds about Donald Trump? But not every vote is created equal. Those are real hurdles for people, particularly in a pandemic. She was a leading proponent of the voter ID legislation. Voting is now a right regardless of economic standing, sex or race, but that has not stopped politicians from finding legal methods to decide who can vote and who cannot. Whose Vote Counts, Explained debuted on Netflix on September 28, 2020. And I pushed him on the implications of what he was saying. So I think that there has been a whole lot of attention paid to the state because of that. Simple mistakes like using the wrong color ink or not signing on the envelope can cause your ballot to be discarded. I talked about it with author Ari Berman, whos written extensively on voting rights. Voters who were locked out of the polls pounded on doors. In Wisconsin, Scott Walker and the Republicans began passing a flurry of new voting laws. From voter suppression to disenfranchisement, see the roadblocks that stop voices from being heard. That they wanted to scare people. We went to places in the state that were being hardest hit by the virusdensely populated urban areas: Madison, Green Bay and especially Milwaukee. And they certainly weren't interested in a mail ballot. I thought a lot about this idea when I paid a visit to Black Lives Matter Plaza earlier this fall. For Republicans, though, this all spelled trouble. Both of us was indicted, myself and my wife, and another friend, Spencer Hogue, were indicted on 29 counts of what is called vote fraud. Cities are underrepresented and suburban and rural communities are overrepresented even though they are not a significant portion of the population. Bryan Stevenson is the founder of the Equal Justice Initiative, which created the National Memorial. Im celebrating social distance-wise [cheering] with my friends and my colleagues. Can we count on you to remind three friends to return their absentee ballots before Election Day? That was the landscape in the days leading up to the April 7 election as more than 1.3 million voters in Wisconsin were requesting absentee ballots. Our goal for today is going to be getting people registered to vote, and then also having people request their absentee ballots for. The violence that takes place, the trauma that takes place, the lynching that takes place, the mass migration of Black people from the Deep South to the North and the West that takes place, which will also have political implications, it's all a result of this violent opposition to allowing Black people to vote. A drama series about the origins of the opioid crisis. Every day we're getting alerts this changed or this changed. Currently, only 19 U.S. states have automatic voter registration. We're going door to door. The job of making that happen fell to numerous appointed officials like Neil Albrecht. Leonardo DiCaprio, Selena Gomez and John Legend lend their voices to this incisive, informative deep dive into U.S. voting. FRONTLINE is a registered trademark of WGBH Educational Foundation. Sign up for the Learning about the different ways politicians suppress voting could leave viewers discouraged, but knowing how far we have come could also be empowering. What does this look like? You can use your certified birth certificate, a pay stub and your Social Security. Just a reminder, that the Black Lives Matter movement is about more than just police brutality and extends into banking, housing, education, medical, infrastructure, etc. Follow. In Whose Vote Counts, Explained, fears about the voting process being rigged by powerful donors and corporations, gerrymandering, the . Dir., Black Leaders Organizing for Communities: Milwaukee is incredibly segregated. We have the space and time for all your stories. To learn more or opt-out, read our Cookie Policy. FRANK C. "BUTCH" ELLIS JR., Shelby County Attorney: I think the Voting Rights Act made a tremendous change. And we woke up the next day and I saw a sight I didn't ever imagine seeing. The pandemic has brought unprecedented strains on American voting systems, and new opportunities for unfair play. They served their time, and are free citizens just like anyone else. The right to vote is at the foundation of America's democracy. Whose Vote Counts, Explained (Limited Series) | Official Trailer | Netflix Netflix 25.6M subscribers Subscribe 1.2K Share 66K views 2 years ago The right to vote is at the foundation of. If youre not aware of which one is which between Trump and Joe Biden, then youve got some work to do. The unsolicited ballots refer to the ones sent automatically to registered voters in nine different states, as well as Washington DC. It premiered in the lead up to the 2020 presidential election and is a three-episode spin-off of Explained, a documentary series produced by Vox.The first episode, narrated by Leonardo DiCaprio, explains the history of the right to vote in the U.S..The second episode, narrated by Selena Gomez . None of these things will be improved by staying home and watching the world burn. Rather than gossip, he focuses on how events in the entertainment world reflect on society at large. Ive had conversations with peers where they explained why they wont vote because of the electoral college, and how it gives certain states an unfair amount of power. I was making dinner for my two kids when I learned about the United States Supreme Court case, and it was just a little while after learning about the Wisconsin state Supreme Court case. By what name was Whose Vote Counts, Explained (2020) officially released in India in Hindi? And that's what Vox's new Netflix special series Whose Vote Counts is about. This series explores voter suppression, campaign spending and how the system seems to be rigged to give some groups less powers . And I said to them, "I don't know that we have a path to win this election. Report. with a few exceptions, almost every lawsuit that's been filed have been unable to show that in fact it keeps people out of the polls. Now we'd come with the 1965 Voting Rights Act, they couldn't deny it outright, so you find ways to try to suppress it. Only two states have same-day voter registration and North Dakota does not have a registration process. WHOSE VOTE COUNTS, EXPLAINED explores different aspects of the United States's national elections. It diminishes the electoral voice that one person, one vote for those who live in the cities, said Carol Anderson, author of the book One Person, No Vote.. The right to vote is at the foundation of America's democracy. The Turners were facing decades in prison. Why are there so many inconsistencies with voting per state? She was drawing a line straight back to the post-Civil War era, when African Americans risked their lives for the right to vote. They said it best in the episode: if your vote didnt matter, they wouldnt be trying to keep you from voting. The Florida law against ex-cons voting as well as Trumps inaccurate statement about voter fraud are two different ways of suppressing votes. Earlier today, I signed Executive Order 74 to suspend in-person voting for the spring election until June 9. How does the system work, and can it be fixed? is provided by the Jonathan Logan Family Foundation. They absolutely do not exist. We found that over 23,000 Wisconsin voters had their ballots rejected. In the April primary, these Wisconsin voters faced barriers to casting their ballots. We are marching today to dramatize to the nation and dramatize to the world that hundreds and thousands of Negro citizens are denied the right to vote. Then we talked about reducing those to 45. These 16 FRONTLINE documentaries offer context on some of the biggest challenges the new administration faces. Heading into Election Day, a promising bloc of young voters students remains unpredictable, despite high registration rates. It came to a head right where it startedin Alabama, where commissioners in Shelby County had sued the Justice Department, saying that discrimination was no longer the problem it had been in the 1960s and the law had outlived its purpose. Dir., Metcalfe Park Community Bridges: I hate the thought of telling them that they didn't get counted. And thats what Voxs new Netflix special series Whose Vote Counts is about.

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