Advertisement

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Rep. Jesse Jackson, Jr. (D-Ill.), 1980 independent presidential candidate John Anderson (who now heads Fairvote), Melanie Campbell of the Coalition for Black Civic Participation, and other leaders in the movement for election reform will speak at."A Call to Protect and Democratize U.S. Elections: A Panel Presentation on the challenges to American elections."

"The numerous allegations of manipulation in the 2000 and 2004 elections and the change of personnel on the U.S. Supreme Court have raised questions about the future of American democracy," said Dean Myerson, executive director of the Green Institute. "The September 16 panel will feature political and activist leaders with a lot to say about barriers to voting, problems with computer voting machines, and challenges posed by our at-large, winner-take-all election system."

The event will take place at the National Press Club on Friday, September 16, 1-4 p.m., and is sponsored by the Green Institute, the Liberty Tree Foundation for the Democratic Revolution, and Fairvote.

Also on the panel will be 2004 Green Party presidential candidate David Cobb, who initiated the Ohio and New Mexico recounts in the wake of numerous reports of election manipulation and vote obstruction by Republican and Democratic officials in those states.

The panel will provide the media with concise information on these problems and offer concrete solutions for restoring the promise of American democracy. Liberty Tree Foundation fellow Patrick Barrett will moderate. The web page for the event is located at < http://www.greeninstitute.net/democratize>.

A list of participants, sponsors, and other details follows below. Refreshments will be provided.

CONFIRMED PANELISTS:

• Rep. Jesse Jackson, Jr, initiator of the Right to Vote Constitutional Amendment, http://www.house.gov/jackson/

• John Anderson, 1980 Independent Presidential Candidate and Chair of the Center for Voting & Democracy http://www.fairvote.org

• Melanie Campbell, Executive Director of the Coalition for Black Civic Participation http://www.bigvote.org

• David Cobb, 2004 Green Party Presidential Candidate and initiator of the Ohio and New Mexico recount efforts http://www.votecobb.org

• Terry Ao, Senior Attorney, National Asian-Pacific American Legal Consortium http://www.napalc.org

• Rebecca Mercuri: President and CEO of Notable Software and an expert on electronic voting technology http://www.notablesoftware.org

• Linda Schade, Co-Founder and Spokesperson of TrueVoteMD: Campaign for Verifiable Voting in Maryland http://www.truevotemd.org

• Juan Cartagena, General Counsel, Community Service Society, New York http://www.cssny.org

WHEN: Friday, September 16, 1-4 p.m.

WHERE: National Press Club, Murrow, Lisagor Room (13th floor).

SPONSORS:

• The Green Institute, http://www.greeninstitute.net

• The Liberty Tree Foundation for the Democratic Revolution, http://www.libertytreefdr.org

• Fairvote: The Center for Voting & Democracy, http://www.fairvote.org

With additional support from the A. E. Havens Center, http://www.havenscenter.org