CNN announced this morning its plans for increased 2006 election coverage in the three weeks leading up to the November election. And boy is it a long list…

In the three weeks leading up to Election Day on Tuesday, Nov. 7, CNN will marshal its resources and political expertise in multiple one-hour reports looking at the widespread dysfunction besetting Congress, the courts and the executive branch. CNN’s unprecedented in-depth coverage includes:

· CNN’s groundbreaking Broken Government investigations which expose issues of most concern to voters today with specials reported by Jack Cafferty, Candy Crowley, Jeff Greenfield, Ed Henry, John King, Jeffrey Toobin and Kitty Pilgrim;

· Three special reports from Lou Dobbs, one of the most influential political journalists of today. Dobbs will examine the most pressing issues facing the middle class, the complex battle to curb illegal immigration and voting machine irregularities – subjects that he has personally vaulted to the forefront of national discourse; and

· An expanded The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer and Paula Zahn co-anchoring from 7 to 9 p.m. (ET) from Monday, Oct. 30, to Friday, Nov. 3.

CNN’s coverage will culminate in three consecutive nights of wall-to-wall news and analysis surrounding Election Night. America Votes 2006 will air from 4 p.m. to midnight on Monday, Nov. 6, and Wednesday, Nov. 8, delivering the most comprehensive pre-game and post-game coverage anywhere on television. Anchoring Election Night on Tuesday, Nov. 7, from the new state-of-the-art studio in the Time Warner Center in New York will be Blitzer, Dobbs and Anderson Cooper, joined by Zahn. At midnight after the polls have closed on the West Coast, Larry King hosts a special two-hour edition of Larry King Live from Los Angeles will feature instant reaction from leading politicians and observers across America. CNN will continue offering live updates through the night, and American Morning co-anchored by Soledad O’Brien and Miles O’Brien will air at the special time of 5 a.m. (ET) on Wednesday, Nov. 8.

Members of the “Best Political Team in Television” joining Blitzer, Cooper, Dobbs and Zahn on Election Night include senior political correspondent Candy Crowley; chief national correspondent John King; senior national correspondent John Roberts; congressional correspondents Dana Bash and Andrea Koppel; White House correspondents Ed Henry, Suzanne Malveaux and Elaine Quijano; correspondent Joe Johns; senior political analysts Jeff Greenfield and Bill Schneider; and political contributors Paul Begala, Bill Bennett, Donna Brazile, James Carville and J.C. Watts.

“Our expert political team’s unrivaled range and depth of experience allows CNN to offer crucial context around the biggest issues in this election,” said Jon Klein, CNN/U.S. president. “An election is really a great national debate, and CNN’s reporters will help make sense of the underlying questions Americans will be asking as we approach Nov. 7.”

A comprehensive schedule of America Votes 2006 and Broken Government programs follows. All times Eastern.

WEDNESDAY, OCT. 18, at 7 p.m.

Dobbs kicks off CNN’s America Votes 2006 coverage with “War on the Middle Class.” Taking advantage of a town-hall setting in Kansas City, Mo., Dobbs examines real issues facing middle-class Americans with the people impacted most. The hour looks at the cost of housing, education and health care, as well as stagnant wages and the difficulty of achieving and maintaining middle-class status in this country.

THURSDAY, OCT. 19, at 7 p.m.

Kicking off the Broken Government series, Jack Cafferty takes on Washington in “Jack Cafferty: Broken Government.” In his characteristic style, Cafferty will engage viewers by telling it like he sees it on topics including government spending, corruption, abuse of power, electronic voting, the political party system and America’s borders. He will cut through the spin with a tough look at right, left and center. The special will feature viewer e-mails and top guests.

MONDAY, OCT. 23, at 8 p.m.

Broken Government will continue with a jarring insider’s look at Capitol Hill in “The Do Nothing Congress.” The House of Representatives has gone home after meeting for only 93 days this year and accomplishing virtually nothing. CNN White House Correspondent Ed Henry – a veteran of a decade covering Capitol Hill – portrays the paralysis brought on by partisanship and obsession over raising money for elections.

TUESDAY, OCT. 24, at 8 p.m.

In “Two Left Feet,” senior political correspondent Candy Crowley, who has covered political campaigns for more than three decades, will examine why Democratic candidates seem to have such a hard time getting elected. She explores the reasons why Democrats are perceived by many voters as out-of-touch “wimps” incapable of keeping America secure, and why they’re so often out-maneuvered by Republican opponents who often appear to be better organized and faster on their feet.

WEDNESDAY, OCT. 25, at 7 p.m.

Dobbs anchors the second of his one-hour specials, “Broken Borders,” from San Antonio as he guides a town-hall examination of illegal immigration from all angles. The hour examines border security, the impact of illegal immigration on health care and public services and the action of employers who exploit illegal immigrants as a cheap source of labor. A re-airing of the award-winning CNN Presents documentary “Immigrant Nation” follows at 8 p.m.

THURSDAY, OCT. 26, at 8 p.m.

In “Power Play,” chief national correspondent John King returns to his former beat, the White House, to report on the Bush administration’s controversial efforts to wrest back executive authority stripped away by Congress in the years following Vietnam and Watergate.

FRIDAY, OCT. 27, at 8 p.m.

CNN will look at the party controlling both houses of Congress and the presidency as CNN senior political analyst Jeff Greenfield, looks at the GOP dilemma in “Where the Right Went Wrong.” With Republicans firmly in power, many of those most deeply committed to the conservative cause are enraged over out-of-control government spending, political pork, nation-building and the president’s more lenient approach to immigration.

SATURDAY, OCT. 28, at 8 p.m.

In “Judges on Trial,” CNN legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin examines the increasing influence of politics in the courts, which were designed to be above the day-to-day political fray. Following recent court battles over Terri Schiavo, gay marriage, abortion and voting rights, “activist judges” has become a hot political catch phrase. Toobin explores whether the American judicial branch is really renegade and unaccountable or actually under the thumb of politicians and special interests. This special will feature rare exclusive interviews with former Justice Sandra Day O’Connor and Justice Stephen Breyer inside the Supreme Court.

SUNDAY, OCT. 29, at 7 p.m.

In “Democracy at Risk: E-voting’s Threat,” Lou Dobbs and correspondent Kitty Pilgrim examine whether every vote will count in the mid-term elections. From voter fraud and voter ID legislation to systematic problems with electronic voting machines, the hour details how many Americans are not convinced their votes get counted.

MONDAY, OCT. 30-FRIDAY, NOV. 3, from 7-9 p.m.

In the week leading up to Election Night, CNN will air special two-hour prime-time editions of The Situation Room anchored by Wolf Blitzer and Paula Zahn.

SATURDAY, NOV. 4

For a special one-hour “Your Health/Your Vote” edition of House Call at 8 a.m., senior medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta examines how the results of the mid-term election might affect health- and medical-related issues such as prescription drugs, Medicare, uninsured Americans and stem-cell research. This edition of House Call will re-air on Sunday, Nov. 5, at 8 a.m.

For a special election edition of Open House taped in Minneapolis, Minn., at 9:30 a.m., CNN’s personal finance editor Gerri Willis explains how the upcoming election will affect the housing market. This edition of Open House will re-air on Saturday, Nov. 4, and Sunday, Nov. 5, at 5:30 p.m. both days on Headline News.

Jack Cafferty anchors a special election edition of In the Money at 1 p.m. in which the program considers how the election results will affect personal financial and economic issues. This edition of In the Money re-airs on Sunday, Nov. 5, at 3 p.m.

Senior national correspondent John Roberts anchors a special edition of This Week at War live from Iraq at 7 p.m. For “The Iraq Effect,” Roberts travels to Baghdad to offer an up-to-the-minute status report on the war. Pentagon correspondents Jamie McIntyre and Barbara Starr will contribute to the program. This edition of This Week at War re-airs on Sunday, Nov. 5, at 1 p.m.

MONDAY, NOV. 6, from 4 p.m. to midnight CNN offers a comprehensive preview of Election Day.

TUESDAY, NOV. 7 – ELECTION DAY

CNN’s coverage originates from the new, state-of-the-art studio at the Time Warner Center in New York and will be co-anchored by Blitzer, Cooper and Dobbs, joined by Zahn. A special two-hour Larry King Live follows at midnight.

WEDNESDAY, NOV. 8, from 4 p.m. to midnight CNN offers special prime-time coverage of the impact of the 2006 mid-term elections.

“As voters prepare to make critical decisions about the prosecution of the Iraq war, the wider war on terrorism and the economy, Americans of all ideologies have a nagging sense that something is fundamentally wrong with the way our government operates,” said CNN political director Sam Feist. “Broken Government will offer concrete examples of where the problems lie and serve as a high-resolution snapshot of the most highly charged election season since 1994.”

All parts of the Broken Government series will re-air at 11 p.m. (ET) following their premieres. Terry Irving is the series’ supervising producer. Feist will oversee the series and the broader America Votes 2006 coverage.