Widespread voter disenfranchising in Pennsylvania

[flamingdem]

http://maddowblog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/07/05/12578820-widespread-disenfranchising-in-pennsylvania?lite

About a week ago, Republican Mike Turzai, Pennsylvania's House Majority Leader, made a startling confession. Boasting about the state's new voter-ID law, which was ostensibly about the integrity of the electoral process, Turzai bragged that the law "is gonna allow Governor Romney to win the state of Pennsylvania."

The surprising candor helped reinforce what Democrats have argued all along: these laws are about disenfranchising voters Republican don't like. The right usually maintains the trumped up "voter fraud" pretense, but once in a great while, a GOP official will slip and tell the truth.

And the truth, at least in the Keystone State, is that Republicans are prepared to block a huge chunk of the voting-age population from participating in their own democracy.

- Nearly 10 percent of Pennsylvania's registered voters do not have photo identification cards from the state transportation department and could be ineligible to vote in November under the state's new Republican-backed voter ID law.

- The Pennsylvania Department of State reported Tuesday that more than 758,000 registered voters lack a standard driver's license or a non-driver photo ID. That's 9.2 percent of the state's 8.2 million voters.

- In Philadelphia, where Democrats outnumber Republicans by about 6-1, 18 percent of the city's registered voters do not have the state photo ID, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

[HopeHoops]

1. That was asswipe Corbett's plan all along.

[flamingdem]

2. Pa. voter disenfranchisement worse then predicted

... recent Kos article

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/07/04/1106132/-Pa-voter-disenfranchesement-worse-then-predicted

In today's Philadelphia Inquirer it's reported more than 758,000 registered voters do not have photo id cards from Penndot or other approved forms. That's 9.2 % of Pa. voters and (surprise, surprise) concentrated in Philadelphia. I imagine Mike Turzai is doing cartwheels. But it's not yet a done deal that this will significantly help Republican efforts to steal Pa. this November.
(More below)

1) (taking it for what it's worth) GOP Department of State spokesman Ron Ruman claims that over 150,000 of the # above are "inactive", not having voted in the last four years. and claims many are former college students.

2) If the law is upheld it gives some months for Democratic and independent activists to get ids for some.

3) July 25th there will be a hearing by Judge Robert Simpson (hopefully no relation to Bart) in Commonwealth Court. The tape of Turzai bragging about the effect of the law and the high numbers disenfranchesed should be persuasuve arguments aginst the law.

Oh, and Ruman says the state plans to finally distribute lists of the people ineligible so far to county election boards by next week that Philadelphia City Commission Chairman Stephanie Singer says were promised last May. Ruman also said the state would send letters to all non-Peenndot ID voters telling them they're not eligible and what to do (but no mfinancial assistance?).,

Good grief, the Michigan governor is more enlightened then Corbett!

[flamingdem]

3. Being discussed on msnbc now

nt