Political Animal
Blog
Emily Schultheis has a useful update at Politico on the status of voter ID and other “war on voting” laws in states considered competitive in the 2012 presidential election. Because of the current litigation and the especially blatant political impetus behind it, Pennsylania’s new voter ID law has been gettting the lion’s share of attention recently. Moreover, new laws have been stalled (at least temporarily) in other battleground states, notably North Carolina (legislation vetoed by governor), Wisconsin (new law declared unconstitutional by state judge), and Ohio (new law partially repealed).
But it’s helpful to remember that (1) voting restrictions in non-battleground states (i.e., voter ID laws in Georgia, Indiana, Tennessee, South Carolina and Texas) will affect downballot races; (2) voter ID laws aren’t the only important restrictions (viz. the early voting cutbacks in Ohio and Florida that are being challenged in court, or Iowa’s sweeping disenfranchisement of ex-felons)); and (3) laws aside, many Republican-administered jurisdictions will play games with voters in heavily Democratic areas prior to and on Election Day, as they generally have since time immemorial.
Facebook
Twitter
jpeckjr on July 30, 2012 12:35 PM:
Why do Republicans hate democracy? Why do they have so much contempt for regular people?
They like to complain about "elites," but they are the elites, trying to keep the hoipolloi from participating in a government of the people, by the people, for the people.
DAY on July 30, 2012 12:41 PM:
The Right has been yelling for some time now that we have to have ID to drive, get on a plane, etc.
True.
And, when I first registered to vote (JFK vs RMN), I had to show proof that I was 21. Maybe a birth certificate, but probably my PA driver's license was enough. Back then, citizenship was not much of a topic.
The point is, since then that first registration has been enough, every two years, for the past half century!
New voters, sure, make them have ID.
Jack on July 30, 2012 1:08 PM:
Can you elaborate on the ways in which "many Republican-administered jurisdictions will play games with voters in heavily Democratic areas?"
I remember in 2004 how they provided far fewer voting machines in Democratic districts (per voter) than they did in Republican districts, meaning much longer lines and, consequently, many lost votes. But something more expansive would be nice.
RepublicanPointOfView on July 30, 2012 2:39 PM:
The only mistake that our country has made that was worse than giving n!ggers the right to vote was giving women the right to vote.
We are only working to rectify these mistakes.
JM917 on July 31, 2012 12:44 PM:
@ RepublicanPointOfView:
The worst evil of all was to let thosse damned Democrat followers of Andy Jackson, back in the 1820s and 1830s, force the Sovereign States to allow all free white men to vote. The very idea! They ended the Job Creators' and the superior gentlemen's exclusive right to vote, and things have been sliding downhill ever since. John C. Calhoun, who was right about everything including the benevolence of slavery and the wickedness of democracy, remains to be vindicted. Fortunately, his spirit lives on in our great Senator Jim DeMint, and we will yet overcome (the evils of democracy and race-mixing, of course).