Concurrence of colleges and universities conferring baccalaureate degrees : a case study of Washington State

Is Distance to Drop Box an Appropriate Proxy for Drop Box Treatment? A Case Study of Washington State

American Politics Research ◽

10.1177/1532673x211022192 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1532673X2110221

Author(s):

Loren Collingwood ◽

Benjamin Gonzalez O’Brien

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

Voter Turnout ◽

The United States ◽

Washington State ◽

Individual Level ◽

Primary 52 ◽

The One ◽

Vote By Mail

In the United States, drop box mail-in voting has increased, particularly in the all vote by mail (VBM) states of Washington, Colorado, Utah, and Oregon. To assess if drop boxes improve voter turnout, research proxies box treatment by voters’ residence distance to nearest drop box. However, no research has tested the assumption that voters use drop boxes nearest their residence more so than they do other drop boxes. Using individual-level voter data from a 2020 Washington State election, we show that voters are more likely to use the nearest drop box to their residence relative to other drop boxes. In Washington’s 2020 August primary, 52% of drop box voters in our data used their nearest drop box. Moreover, those who either (1) vote by mail, or (2) used a different drop box from the one closest to their residence live further away from their closest drop box. Implications are discussed.

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Outreach at Washington State University: a case study in costs and attendance

10.1117/12.2236719 ◽

2016 ◽

Author(s):

Elizabeth A. Bernhardt ◽

Viktor Bollen ◽

Thomas M. Bersano ◽

Sean M. Mossman

Keyword(s):

Washington State ◽

State University ◽

Washington State University

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Washington State's Public Records Act: A Battle in the 2018 Legislature and Beyond

The Journal of Civic Information ◽

10.32473/joci.v2i1.121554 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 2 (1) ◽

pp. 23-37

Author(s):

Peggy Watt

Keyword(s):

Washington State ◽

Lessons Learned ◽

State Legislators ◽

Crucial Point ◽

Public Records ◽

Citizen Activism ◽

Court Action ◽

Voter Initiative

This case study documents the battle over the Washington State Public Records Act, which raged from 2017 through the end of 2019, reaching a crucial point through an extraordinary combination of citizen activism, journalistic pressure, and court action. The act, adopted in 1972 by a voter initiative, covers all “agencies,” but state legislators rejected the classification and refused to honor records requests. Journalists successfully challenged the Legislature in court, and in response lawmakers attempted to update the act to allow for secrecy, but failed. Lessons learned from the scuffle may be applied by legislators and transparency advocates in Washington state and throughout the country.

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