Woman walks 600 km to vote in historic Bhutan poll:

The Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan may lay claim to having the world's most enthusiastic voter -- a 65-year-old woman who walked 600 kilometres (380 miles) to cast her ballot.

The woman responded to an appeal from the country's king to embrace democracy as Bhutan shifts from absolute royal rule to becoming a constitutional democracy in Monday's election, the Bhutan Times reported.

People were allowed to vote only in the place of their birth and thousands headed to remote villages to take part in the country's first parliamentary elections ending absolute rule by the Wangchuck dynasty.

One of the inspiring things about this election season stateside has been how many new voters have been turning out for the primaries. In almost every primary, voter turnout has been up - and often by historic levels:

_Democratic primaries in 12 states set records. They are Alabama, Arizona, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Massachusetts, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, South Carolina and Utah.

_Republican primaries in 11 states saw their highest percentages of voter turnout ever. They are Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Missouri, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Utah.

Given our long national struggle over enfranchisement, it's good to see folks taking advantage of it. That said, we still have work to do to ensure everyone has access to the ballot. The woman of Bhutan wasn't the only one who walked long distances in order to vote. In February, Students at Prairie View A&M, a historically black college in Texas, walked over seven miles to vote, in a protest of inadequate polling locations and resources.

The ACLU has a long history of standing up for voting rights for all - but there's still work to be done.

Hat tip, Slog