EFFECTS OF MOTOR VOTER LEGISLATION - VOTER TURNOUT, REGISTRATION, ANDPARTISAN ADVANTAGE IN THE 1992 PRESIDENTIAL-ELECTION

The 1992 presidential election featured nine states and the District o f Columbia with effective motor voter laws on the books. In 1996 all s tates will be required to have similar motor voter procedures. We cond uct a multivariate analysis to compare turnout differences, partisan b ehavior, and registration levels in motor voter and non-motor voter st ates. We find that rates of voter registration and turnout are signifi cantly higher in motor voter states than in other states. In addition, it appears that these newly registered voters are just as likely to v ote as other registered voters. We find no significant partisan advant age for either party in motor voter states.