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PA Voter ID Case: Final Arguments

by: DocJess

Thu Aug 02, 2012 at 17:30:54 PM EDT

It's looking good - not counting chickens yet, but...

Among the reasons [the good guys are] feeling confident (according to an Advancement Project press release): state officials admitted they underestimated the number of registered voters without acceptable photo ID, admitted the law will disenfranchise voters, admitted the law will hold different voters to different standards, admitted voters casting an absentee ballot will be able to vote without ID, Pennsylvania’s Secretary of State admitted she didn’t know details about the law’s requirements and Pennsylvania’s House majority leader made comments opponents of the law believe showed the law is politically motivated. Source.

The Texas case is with the judges, the South Carolina case is headed to court, and both Florida and Pennsylvania are being investigated by the Justice Department.

It's no reason to cease voter registration and GOTV activities, but it may be that in some places, fairness, law and the US Constitution will prevail.

DocJess :: PA Voter ID Case: Final Arguments

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PA Voter ID Case: Final Arguments | 5 comments

constitutional (0.00 / 0)

Good to hear.

by: suzihussein22 @ Sat Aug 04, 2012 at 11:47:59 AM UTC

by: you @ soon

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Just a thought (0.00 / 0)

Always thought that the case for the new laws and the way they were written was weak. Election Reform, on a National Level needs to be tackled, but won't be. It's not in the politician's best interest to do what is right for the people. That said, if folks are worried about voter fraud, dead people voting, voting under the wrong name, illegal aliens voting, then maybe they ought to adopt a voting system like Oregon has. It is basically all absentee ballots. You register to vote, with your address. They mail you a ballot, to your address. You mark your ballot and either mail it back in, or on election day drop it into a drop box. One registered voter, one vote. If you have to work or travel, you have a ballot and a chance to vote without trying to get to the polling places on election day. Not sure how Oregon's percentage of registered voters vs. actual voters calculates out, but likely to be higher than the National average since it is easier to vote.

by: Emit R Detsaw @ Sat Aug 04, 2012 at 12:35:31 PM UTC

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How to Make People Vote (0.00 / 0)

The simpler you make it, the more people will vote.

The issue with all these voter suppression laws is that they have nothing to do with anything other than making voting more difficult. When you talk to people (not politicians, but the man-on-the-street teabaggers) they're concerned with non-citizens voting. That's it. Non-citizens. They actually don't care that people who will vote against their candidates show up at the polls.

The fallacy is that on election day, the workers are volunteers. If there was REALLY a concern about non-citizens voting, then the state should check for ID at the time of registration and allow for mail ballots, early voting, etc., anything to make it easier.

But make no mistake - all these laws are just to suppress turnout.

by: DocJess @ Mon Aug 06, 2012 at 09:50:36 AM UTC

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by: you @ soon

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Oregon (0.00 / 0)

Does Oregon require that absentee ballots be notarized or have multiple witness signatures? That's what's stopped them from being usable for me in RI when I wasn't well.

by: trud @ Wed Aug 08, 2012 at 15:14:41 PM UTC

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by: you @ soon

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Not that I have read (0.00 / 0)

Since all ballots are mailed out, so basically there are no absentee ballots. You register, they mail you a ballot within a voting window, then you mail it back filled out or drop it in a drop box. No witness or notarization required.

http://ballotpedia.org/wiki/in...

by: Emit R Detsaw @ Wed Aug 08, 2012 at 21:00:40 PM UTC

[ Parent ]