With an estimated 60 million eligible Americans not registered to vote, our democracy still has a long way to go to be representational. So why is there is a nationwide attack on community-based voter registration drives?
Community-based voter registration drives have been a symbol of equality and empowerment since the civil rights era, but there is a new trend of draconian legislation that threatens to stop the drives in their tracks. Florida and Texas have already passed laws that will prevent community organizations from conducting voter registration drives, and four more states—including Missouri, Mississippi, New York, and South Carolina—are currently considering bills that create restrictions that would make voter registration drives prohibitively risky or difficult.
The controversial Florida law has drawn congressional attention. Friday in Florida, there will be a Field Hearing of the Senate Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Human Rights to discuss Florida’s “war on voting.” Voting rights groups, individuals, and community-based organizations will testify about the difficulties of helping Americans to vote under Florida’s law, which makes it nearly impossible to run a community-based voter registration drive in the state. The League of Women Voters, for example, has decided to suspend voter registration work in the state for the first time in 72 years. Even well-intentioned individuals are at risk: recently, Florida high school teacher Jill Cicciarelli discovered she had inadvertently broken the law and could face thousands of dollars of fines just for trying to help her students register to vote.
Two restrictive voting bills will go to the Missouri Senate and House floors, respectively, after gaining committee approval this week.
Nearly six years has passed since Missouri adopted a photo ID law that was later struck down by the state Supreme Court because it put a “heavy and substantial burden on Missourians’ free exercise of the right of suffrage.” Since then, lawmakers have tried to pass a new voter law that would exclude an estimated 253,496 Missourians from the democratic process. Today, voter ID bill, HB 1104 cleared a House committee after two hours of testimony from the public, the Kansas City Star reports.
“Critics contend that no one in Missouri has ever been prosecuted for committing the type of fraud prevented by a photo ID requirement — voter impersonation,” the Star reports. “They also point out that Missouri voters already are required to provide a form of ID before casting a ballot, such as a utility bill, bank statement or paycheck.”
Image by George Olcott. Image used under Creative Commons license.
Claiming that the Obama Administration is “hostile” toward voter ID laws, Texas Attorney General Greg Abbot is suing for approval of its 2011 law.
The state is required to seek federal approval before implementing changes to voting laws due to its history in discriminating against citizens of color. Recently, the Justice Department delayed approval, asking for more information on how the new law would be implemented and how it would affect voters. But, Abbot wants the law implemented “as soon as possible.”
“To fast-track that authority, Texas is taking legal action in a D.C. court seeking approval of its voter identification law,” Abbot said in a statement. ”Although today’s legal action asks the federal court to approve its voter identification law, the State’s preclearance submission remains pending with the DOJ… If the DOJ approves the law, the State will dismiss its lawsuit.”
Some of you have asked us how to check if you are registered to vote, if you are eligible to vote, and where you can register to vote. Here are some helpful links that may help you get back on track.
Am I registered to vote?
The National Association of Secretaries of State maintains a useful Web site that helps voters check their registration status, find their polling place, and know what kind of ID to bring, among other tips. Go to CanIVote.org for more details.
Am I eligible to register to vote?
You must be a citizen of the United States to register to vote. Residency requirements, age, and past felony conviction all affect your eligibility to register vote and rules vary by state. Check with your local or state election offices before attempting to register to vote.
The Brennan Center for Justice also offers research and information on “Voter Eligibility Issues,” including “Voting After Criminal Conviction,” “Student Voting,” “Military and Veteran Voting,” and “Voting After You Move.”
Some states allow 16- and 17-year-old citizens to preregister to vote so that they are automatically eligible to cast a ballot when they reach voting age. Check this list to see if your state permits preregistration.
Where can I register to vote?
You may fill out this online voter registration form, print it, stamp it, and send it to your state election official.
You may also visit a number of public offices to fill out a voter registration form, including:
• State or local voter registration and/or election offices
• The department of motor vehicles
• Public assistance agencies
• Armed services recruitment centers
• State-funded programs that serve people with disabilities
• Any public facility that a State has designated as a voter registration agency
Some states and one Nevada county allow you to fully register to vote online. Look for these forms on your state Web site if you live in Arizona, Colorado, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Oregon, Utah, Washington, or Clark County, Nevada.
For more information, see the Election Assistance Commission’s 2012 voter guide.
Our nation’s first two primaries make it easy for citizens to come to the polls and vote via Election Day registration. In both Iowa and New Hampshire this month, eligible citizens had the option to register at the polls and cast their ballots at the same time. The Iowa GOP primary had record turnout in a caucus that was decided by only eight voters, proving once again that every vote matters.
Election Day registration, or same-day registration, is a convenience-voting option that allows a citizen to show up at their polling place, register to vote on the spot, and cast their vote. Voting rights advocates support this option because studies have shown that it increases voter participation. Project Vote agrees that Election Day registration is a meaningful tool for Americans to use to boost turnout rates.
Legislators in New York and Washington agree: both states have introduced legislation to implement Election Day:
Tennessee’s new photo ID law not only faces potential legal challenges, but it is also being questioned by senior citizens who are now forced to obtain picture ID to vote in November.
Troubled by the new law, 85-year-old voter Aleda Kelly of Memphis wrote her local newspaper, describing her experience with obtaining ID to vote and her ultimate fear that this law would disenfranchise other senior citizens.
What do the Secretaries of State from Colorado, Kansas, Maine and New Mexico have in common? They have all tried to make voting more difficult, says Robert M. Brandon, founder and president, of the Fair Elections Legal Network:
“The secretaries of state in Colorado, Kansas, Maine and New Mexico all used their office last year to throw doubt on their state’s election system. To support more restrictive voting laws, these officials called into question the eligibility of hundreds, sometimes thousands, of registered voters — though there is little evidence to support their claims of people illegally registering and voting.” For more, read Brandon’s opinion in today’s Politico.
Iowa Caucus Won’t Require Voter ID, and Will Allow Election Day Registration, in Order to Encourage Participation
All across the country Republican legislators have been pushing strict voter ID requirements and the elimination of same-day registration, under the guise of protecting the integrity of elections. Today in Iowa, however, Republicans without a photo ID will be allowed to vote. The party is also inviting voters to use Election Day registration, which means that a citizen can show up to the polls, register, and cast their vote even if they neglected to register earlier.
Why the turn-around? Because the Iowa Republican Party knows what we all know: that photo ID requirements make it harder for eligible citizens to participate in democracy, and Election Day registration makes it easier.
Over the holiday, the Department of Justice came to a decision on whether to approve South Carolina‘s photo voter ID requirement before the 2012 presidential election.
Due to its history of voter suppression, South Carolina must seek federal approval before implementing new election laws, including the 2011 voter ID law, Act 27. The Justice Department had already requested more data to “determine if the new law will disenfranchise minority voters” in August, extending their deadline another 60 days to decide whether the law should be implemented.
On December 23, the Justice Department rejected the law as discriminatory because South Carolina’s “registered minority voters are nearly 20 percent more likely than whites to lack state-issued photo ID.”
“The absolute number of minority citizens whose exercise of the franchise could be adversely affected by the proposed requirements runs into the tens of thousands,” wrote Assistant Attorney General Thomas E. Perez in a letter to South Carolina officials.
In 2008, the United States experienced the most diverse electorate in American history. Youth, people of color, and low-income Americans surged to the polls and casted their ballots for leaders they believed in.
Right now, partisan forces are trying to make sure this doesn’t happen again in 2012. They are working overtime to make it harder for young, minority, and lower-income citizens to register and vote.
Even the Department of Justice recognizes their dirty work. Just last week, Attorney General Eric Holder addressed the partisan assault on voting rights, the likes of which we have not seen since before the civil rights movement: “We need election systems that are free from fraud, discrimination and partisan influence — and that are more, not less, accessible to the citizens of this country.”
We couldn’t agree more.
