With 41
days until Election Day, both parties are working hard to get potential voters
registered — but only if you are the right kind of voter.
In a protest over a YouTube film which demonstrators
feel insults Islam, more U.S. Embassies continue to be attacked. With
over 15 Americans under attack, you
would think that would be the front page story, or you would think that it was
the stock market index closing hundreds of points down on its worst day of
trading in years, or the proletarian riots that are breaking out somewhere in
the world, or any of the statements made today by the Republican Presidential
candidate Mitt Romney or statements made by President Obama himself – but it is
not. Tonight’s leading story is about a woman named Jane Doe. Jane Doe is an 82-year-old
resident of City, State, and has been voting for the last 64 years. This year
she was told she can’t. A new law in Texas requires residents to show a
government issued photo ID in order to vote. Jane Doe does not have a driver’s
license because Jane Doe does not have a car. Jane Doe does not have a passport
– her days of traveling and adventure ended long ago. Her state of residence is
not alone.
At
this moment according to the National Conference of State Legislators, 31 states
have proposed or already adopted the same voter id laws that have disqualified citizens
like Jane Doe from the one fundamental thing we all do as Americans. Studies
from The Brennan Center for Justice estimates that roughly 11 percent or nearly
34 million people do not have government issued photo ids and will be disenfranchised
this November 6. Why? To crack down on what some politicians voice as the
terrible problem of voter fraud. Governor Rick Perry of Texas who previously
entered the Presidential Primary Race this year is serious about cracking down
on the problem, “Making sure that there is not fraud, making sure that someone
is not manipulating the process that makes all the sense in the world to me.”
Voter
fraud is such a huge problem that during a five year period under the Bush
Administration when 196 million votes were cast according to the U.S. Census
Bureau, the number of cases of voter fraud reached – 86. Not 86,000 but 86. As
a percentage of votes cast, that number is - .00004 percent. This could be seen
as a solution without a problem, but instead, it is a solution to another
problem. Certain political parties have a hard time getting particular groups
of people to vote for them; things would be a lot easier if those groups were
just not allowed to vote at all. According to the National Conference of State
Legislators, 31 voter id laws were proposed by a particular group of political
party legislators’, passed by the same party whom controlled the state houses
and signed into law by that same party’s Governors.
Now while
the previous case of Jane Doe may be a fictitious character sensationalized by
media outlets and syndicated programming, it is a real issue affecting minority
groups, the elderly and college voters; many of whom are not even aware of the
fact that the U.S. elections are hindering their rights and turning into a
criminal enterprise. Here is what you
need to know. The federal court struck down the Texas law that would have
required voters to show government-issued photo identification before casting
their ballots in November. The court said the law “would hurt turnout among
minority voters and impose strict, unforgiving burdens on the poor by charging
those voters who lack proper documentation fees to obtain election ID cards.”
Government officials called the Texas’ voter-identification law “the most
stringent of its kind in the country.” Governor Rick Perry and supporters are
attempting to appeal the decision to the United States Supreme Court.
While the
appeal is waiting to be filed, many college students are speaking their minds
on the issue. UT Student Government Representative Jordan Metoyer says,
“College students were an integral demographic in the 2008 election, a fact
that may change entirely if some lawmakers get their way.” Many students agree
with Jordan. Cortney Sanders, a junior Government major at the University of
Texas at Austin says this is just another way to keep marginalized groups from
the poll. “This is a disenfranchisement to all college students, especially
those of color and who are out of state.” While law says you just need a birth
certificate and $23 to pay for a photo id, Cortney says “this is just like the
illegal poll tax and that is just wrong on every level.” As college students,
both Jordan and Cortney say that their likelihood to vote is largely based on
the time required to enact their right; any obstacle that adds a burden to
students will negatively affect their chances of voting.
One
proposed solution for college students is absentee ballots. However, student
deputy voter registrars like Cortney say it is not the best thing especially
for college students. If you are a college student looking to vote in the
upcoming election, Cortney offers her advice by encouraging students to
“register and vote where your school is since that is where you typically
reside for about 10 months out of the school year.” The deadline to register to
vote is October 9. Travis County Tax Office Director Tiffany Seward offers her
advice to college students registering or looking to vote in the upcoming
election. “The first thing college students must do is determine where they
want to vote. Students may vote at their home address, and if they decide to
exercise this option, they should contact that state or county to request an
absentee ballot. Students who prefer to vote in Travis County on Election Day
must register at their new address by October 9. Because students tend to move
often, they should check their voter registration status before the deadline.”
While
there is no evidence of significant levels of voter impersonation — the sort of
fraud that would be addressed by ID requirements — the argument is that this
issue is going undetected. Proponents for the voter id bill say these laws are
constitutional methods of preventing voter fraud, restrictions needed to
prevent fraud. Voter impersonation fraud is rare and proponents for the law contend
that the restrictions are a veiled effort to suppress turnout by legitimate
voters such as students, the elderly and minorities. These are voters who are less likely to have
a photo ID card and who tend to support a particular political party.
