Transparency In Politics uses PeopleTrail for candidates’ background checks. The background report is part of its offering to political candidates and is quite comprehensive. This report is based on information supplied by the candidates, including their social security numbers. Almost all background checks include a criminal history check. These checks will review felony and misdemeanor criminal convictions (not charges that were dropped or settled), pending criminal cases, and any history of incarceration as an adult. In addition, checks can include…

How is the verification of a political candidate’s qualifications done at the Washoe County Registrar of Voters Office? Before moving on to explain how the verification of a political candidate’s qualifications is handled at the Washoe County Registrar of Voters, you have to know its limitations. The Washoe County Registrar does not handle filings for people running for the following offices: Second, the Registrar of Voters has no authority to deny ANYONE the right to file to run for office….

Why do employers require background checks? Employers want to be sure that they’re hiring the person the applicant says he/she is and that the applicant is eligible to work in the US. So why shouldn’t we have background checks for political candidates? About 92-96% of employers require background checks for new hires. This is not only to control risk but also to ensure that their employees and customers are safe from harm. Companies want to ensure job seekers are honest…

What is media literacy, and why should I care about it? Media literacy is similar to fluency in a foreign language. It takes practice and experience to determine the credibility of a media source. This skill is particularly important to develop with the rise of misinformation and disinformation, which spread harmful narratives that disseminate quickly. What’s the difference between misinformation and disinformation? Misinformation is false or inaccurate information, while disinformation is false information which is intended to mislead. Sometimes, misinformation…

What are the requirements to run for office in Nevada and most other states? There aren’t many requirements to run for office in Nevada or anywhere else! According to the Nevada Secretary of State’s Office, a candidate must be a certain age (varies by office), live in a certain area for certain offices for a certain period of time, and only a few offices have an education requirement!  For some offices, a petition with a certain number of signatures is…

You might be wondering WHY elected officials are not required to have background checks. What is the history of background checks for political candidates and elected officials? For many reasons, this doesn’t make sense! From our second email, you can see that many employers require background checks. Elected officials supervise people who have background checks-why don’t they have to have them themselves? A Bit of History The Founding Fathers knew their political folks. There was little anonymity and certainly, the…