High Turnout Wide Margins

Hosted by Brianna Lennon

Eric Fey

Co-hosts Brianna Lennon, county clerk in Boone County, Missouri and Eric Fey, director of elections in St. Louis County, Missouri, talk to subject-matter elections experts and local election administrators to ask the questions that are most meaningful to their work and talk with colleagues about how to best approach issues like voter education, cybersecurity, and integrity.

From the High Turnout Wide Margins team:
High Turnout Wide Margins has officially wrapped a 26-episode second season. The second season won four prestigious awards this year: a regional Edward R. Murrow Award, a National Headliner Award, a Public Media Journalist Association Award, and a Missouri Broadcasters Association Certificate of Merit.

The importance of High Turnout Wide Margins is two-fold. The first, as well as the original goal of the podcast, is to give voice to the actual people running elections at the local level. We have heard from local election administrators throughout the country that this podcast has become a regular listen and the podcast has even been used in the training of election staff throughout the country. Second, HTWM educates and provides valuable insight into the process of elections for everyday voters. While voters may be aware of the electoral college, Congress, etc., this podcast draws back the curtain so that the day-to-day work of election administration can be understood more thoroughly.

Thank you for making Season 3 of HTWM a reality. With your support, a successful Kickstarter campaign and fundraising, High Turnout Wide Margins returns.

Latest Episodes

S3E20 - Piloting Domestic Election Observation with Montana’s Jeff Mangan

In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Jeff Mangan. He’s a former Commissioner of Political Practice in Montana, and one of co-chairs of the Montana Election Observation Initiative [MEOI], a Carter Center-supported nonpartisan election observation effort.MEOI conducted their first pilot observation during Montana’s June 4th primary in Missoula. You can read the preliminary report — here. They spoke about how these domestic election observations came about, how their first pilot went and about how nonpartisan election observation efforts could play a role in the future.
S3E19 - It's happening.....it's finally happening! Tom Hicks with the EAC

The High Turnout Wide Margins team recently traveled to Portland, Oregon, for a special workshop on State Associations hosted by the Election Center. While there, we were able to have face-to-face conversations with people working in elections across the country.In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Commissioner Tom Hicks, one of the longest serving members of the Election Assistance Commission, or EAC.They spoke about Tom’s time as a commissioner, how elections can be more accessible for disabled voters, and how the EAC could play a role in developing the election administration workforce.
S3E18 - A Tale of Two Cities with Michigan’s Jackie Beaudry and Melanie Ryska

The High Turnout Wide Margins team recently traveled to Portland, Oregon, for a special workshop on State Associations hosted by the Election Center. While there, we were able to have face-to-face conversations with people working in elections across the country.In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Jackie Beaudry and Melanie Ryska. They’re both local clerks in Michigan and leaders of the Michigan Association of Municipal Clerks.They spoke about the implementation of some new election law in the state, how their association works alongside the Michigan Association of County Clerks, and how their association is trying to balance the needs of very large and very small municipalities.
S3E17 - Virginia is for Voters with Henrico County’s Mark Coakley

The High Turnout Wide Margins team recently traveled to Portland, Oregon, for a special workshop on State Associations hosted by the Election Center. While there, we were able to have face-to-face conversations with people working in elections across the country.In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Mark Coakley. He’s the General Registrar of Henrico County, Virginia.They spoke about Mark’s long history working in elections and the unique way that local election administrators in Virginia are setting their own educational priorities and learning from each other.
S3E16 - Professionalizing the Election Field One OREO at a Time with Ohio’s Aaron Ockerman

The High Turnout Wide Margins team recently traveled to Portland, Oregon, for a special workshop on State Associations hosted by the Election Center. While there, we were able to have face-to-face conversations with people working in elections across the country.In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Aaron Ockerman, the Executive Director of the Ohio Association of Election Officials.They spoke about the importance – and power – of state associations, how having a non-election administrator in charge can strengthen an association, as well as the role a state association can play in better preparing election officials, both old and new, for the increasingly complex nature of their jobs.
S3E15 – Investment, Representation and Reflection in North Carolina with Derek Bowens in Durham County, NC

In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Derek Bowens, the Elections Director in Durham County, North Carolina.They spoke about crafting narratives to help election administrators share and showcase the need for local investment in elections and about the importance of having election administrators that represent and reflect the voters they serve.
S3E14 - A behind-the-scenes look of the private election industry with Matthew Fitch

In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Matthew Fitch. He’s the owner of Merriman River Group, a private election firm that works with organizations such as labor unions and, recently, the Missouri Democratic Party for the presidential preference primary.They spoke about how one manages a private election, including preparation for the ballot box, technology trends, and creating trust with voters.
S3E13 - Exploring a Victorian Election System with the UK Association of Electoral Administrators’ Peter Stanyon

In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Peter Stanyon. He’s the Chief Executive for the Association of Election Administrators, or AEA, in the United Kingdom.They spoke about the complexities of the UK's election system with its limited time frame for some elections, changes in voter ID law, and the challenges of adding modernization on top of a system originally designed in the 1800s.
S3E12 - Putting the Face in… Personalizing the Need for Congressional Elections Funding with Issue One’s Gideon Cohn-Postar

In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Gideon Cohn-Postar. He’s the Legislative Director from Issue One, an organization that advocates for cross partisan political reform at the Congressional level – on issues such as social media reform, protecting the safety of election officials and consistent federal funding for elections throughout the country.They spoke a little about the current status of congressional funding for elections, as well as how projects, like “Faces of Democracy,” can help personalize these issues for members of Congress.To learn more about and read previous “Faces of Democracy articles,” visit https://issueone.org/projects/facesofdemocracy/.
S3E11 - Laying it on the electionline: covering local election news with Mindy Moretti

In this episode, hosts Eric Fey and Brianna Lennon speak with Mindy Moretti, the editor-in-chief of electionline, a news source and aggregator for local election administrators that sends out a daily newsletter on all things election news.They spoke about how electionline has evolved over time, what it takes for Moretti to curate it each morning, and a very special partnership that’s coming soon.You can learn more about electionline and sign up for the daily newsletter at https://electionline.org/