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Virginia Panel Rejects Early Voting

Don Rush

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - A Virginia legislative panel has rejected a bill to allow early voting by everyone up to three weeks before a general election.

The Virginian-Pilot reports that the proposal by Del. Rip Sullivan of Arlington County was one of four Democrat-backed voting measures killed by a House subcommittee's Republican majority Tuesday. Two similar bills also were rejected, along with one to expedite getting 18-year-olds added to the voter rolls.

Sullivan said 32 states allow universal early voting, which he said would reduce lines at the polls on election day. Opponents argued that it would increase the workload and costs in registrars' offices. 

In Virginia, early voting is possible only by applying for an absentee ballot and stating a specified reason, such as illness or out-of-town travel on election day.

Don Rush is the News Director and Senior Producer of News and Public Affairs at Delmarva Public Media. An award-winning journalist, Don reports major local issues of the day, from sea level rise, to urban development, to the changing demographics of Delmarva.