By Wendy Underhill
Movie stars make the scene in Cannes. Artists gather at the Biennale in Venice. Heads of state meet soon in Sicily, for the G7 Summit. And election luminaries go to Williamsburg this year.
Next month visitors to colonial Williamsburg will be lucky to catch a glimpse of:
- Secretaries of state Denise Merrill (Connecticut), Nellie Gorbea (Rhode Island) and Barbara Cegavske (Nevada).
- Dozens of state legislators who set the nation’s policies on elections.
- All three commissioners of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission.
- Election administration experts like Charles Stewart III and Doug Chapin, the nation’s level-headed, most-read, election administration commentators.
- And you?
These folks are gathering for NCSL’s The Future of Elections conference, June 14-16 in Williamsburg, Va. Truth is, this won’t be so much a “see and be seen” event as a “listen and be listened to” opportunity. Conferees will talk about how to keep our voter rolls clean, make voting easier for overseas citizens, buy (and finance) new elections equipment, and some of the latest trends in elections.
This recent blog post sums up the goals of the conference, and the online agenda details the plan. Everyone interested in secure, accessible, effective and modern elections is welcome. Colonial Williamsburg in June promises to be nice, and we are sprinkling in some good old fashioned fun throughout the conference, too.
Please come. The conference is free for legislators and staff.
Wendy Underhill directs NCSL's Redistricting and Elections program.
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