Pew Charitable Trusts Selects University of Richmond to Administer Election Reform Information Project
November 1, 2001
The Pew Charitable Trusts has made a three-year, $3.5 million grant to the University of Richmond to establish a new Election Reform Information Project.
Based in Washington, D.C., the project will serve as a clearinghouse for data, news and analysis about election reform efforts across the country in the wake of the controversial 2000 presidential election.
It is the fourth of Pew's prestigious and highly competitive grants awarded to the university. Pew projects bring with them the opportunity for Richmond students and faculty to conduct research, gain practical experience and establish contacts.
"The project is not dedicated to advocacy, nor are we committed to any specific solution to the problem of election reform," said executive director Doug Chapin, a former congressional staffer. "Rather, the goal will be to offer everyone with an interest in the issues -- advocates, policymakers, officials, journalists, scholars, and concerned citizens -- a forum for learning about, discussing and evaluating the whole array of information and ideas related to the issue of election reform."
Following the 2000 election, governments, organizations, and individuals have been studying the question of how to reform our nation's electoral process. Yet, because these election reform efforts are decentralized, there is a significant risk that prospects for reform could suffer without an opportunity to share the information generated by the various participants in the reform process.
Chapin will be the keynote speaker at a Nov. 1 news conference at the Virginia General Assembly Building in Richmond, where the results of a youth mock election will be announced. High school and elementary students statewide participated in the mock election for governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general and local state senators and delegates. Voting ended on October 31.
The election reform project staff has already begun collecting and analyzing currently available information on election reform. It will expand its work through contact with individuals, groups, and organizations at work on the issue and by monitoring news reports. Continuously updated information is available free on the Internet at www.electionline.org.
"Election reform is one of the most pressing governmental issues facing our country,” said William E. Cooper, university president. "We are grateful that Pew has chosen Richmond to administer four of its major grants devoted to issues of American citizenship."
Richmond already administers the Pew Center for the States, the Pew Partnership for Civic Change and the Pew Initiative on Food and Biotechnology. The four grants are for a total of $42.7 million.