Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search
 

workinclasszero

(28,270 posts)
Thu Nov 1, 2018, 09:44 AM Nov 2018

Republicans' great enemy: Voters

By Editorial Board October 31 at 7:52 PM

WITH THE midterm elections next Tuesday and early voting already underway across the country, this is the season when Americans wonder: Why is it so hard to cast a ballot in our democracy?

Archaic registration processes, outdated technology, low budgets and overwhelmed staff are all problems. There is no reason to make the system harder on people. Yet that is precisely what Republicans have done over the past decade, in a transparently partisan effort to discourage poor and minority voters — most of whom are Democrats — from having their say in the conduct of their government.

Georgia, where voting law has become a major issue in the state’s gubernatorial race, is the poster child for hassling voters with strict and unnecessary rules. The state suspends voter registrations that do not exactly match other government databases. A missing hyphen or an alternate spelling of a name puts registrations on hold. An Associated Press analysis found that minority voters are disproportionately affected. People with on-hold registrations can still vote but might think they cannot.

Georgia also has severe voter-ID requirements. A voter without a limited selection of IDs can cast a provisional ballot, but it will be counted only if the voter presents required ID within three days of Election Day. Virginia enforces similar restrictions.

In North Dakota, a voter-ID law threatens to disenfranchise thousands of Native Americans because they live on rural reservations without street addresses. In New Hampshire, an ID law seems targeted to discourage college students from voting. Republicans tried a similar tactic in Florida, where the secretary of state attempted to keep early-voting sites off university campuses. In Alabama, voters must have proper ID to vote — except if poll workers vouch for them. This is a recipe for a racist application of the law.



https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/republicans-great-enemy-voters/2018/10/31/ef41db0a-dc77-11e8-b3f0-62607289efee_story.html
Latest Discussions»General Discussion»Republicans' great enemy:...