The C is for Crank
Another Reason I'm Glad I Live In Washington State
As we noted in Fizz this morning, several Washington State legislators---including four Seattle representatives---have filed a bill that would automatically register people to vote when they apply for a drivers' license. The proposal, if it passes, won't address those who don't carry state-issued photo ID, but it will make a dent in the number of unregistered voters in the state, particularly among young voters. Trying to build up the voter rolls is a sharp departure from the current policy trend in other (particularly Southern) states, where legislators and voters are moving to make it harder for young people, old people, and minorities to participate in the democratic process.
In Mississippi, for example (my state of origin), voters overwhelmingly approved a Republican-backed measure that will (if it isn't overturned by courts) require all voters to not only register to vote, but to show state-issued ID at the polls, such as a driver's license.
The problem with this common-sense-sounding policy is that it disenfranchises everyone who doesn't have an ID---a group that, conveniently enough, skews strongly toward Democrats.
For example, a quarter of all African-Americans have no ID (compared to just 8 percent of all white US residents). Supporters of the Mississippi law say black Mississippeans can simply go get a driver's license, but the legislation includes no incentive or program making it easier or more affordable for them to do so. (Licenses cost $20, and state-issued ID cards, which do not confer the right to drive, cost $13. Both require the resident to present a social security card, birth certificate, and proof of residency).
Students, meanwhile, come from all over the nation---nonetheless, if they don't have an ID issued by the state of Mississippi, they'll be ineligible to vote. Finally, seniors (many of whom no longer drive) frequently lack both driver licenses and proof of identity (like original birth certificates). Last week, a 93-year-old woman in Tennessee was denied the right to vote because she could not produce a birth certificate, a document that was not routinely issued when she was born.
The Mississippi law could, of course, be overturned; the state has asked the US Justice Department to review and reject the law. The department overturned a similar voter-ID law, this one in South Carolina, earlier this month on the grounds that it discriminated against minorities.
In Mississippi, for example (my state of origin), voters overwhelmingly approved a Republican-backed measure that will (if it isn't overturned by courts) require all voters to not only register to vote, but to show state-issued ID at the polls, such as a driver's license.
The problem with this common-sense-sounding policy is that it disenfranchises everyone who doesn't have an ID---a group that, conveniently enough, skews strongly toward Democrats.
For example, a quarter of all African-Americans have no ID (compared to just 8 percent of all white US residents). Supporters of the Mississippi law say black Mississippeans can simply go get a driver's license, but the legislation includes no incentive or program making it easier or more affordable for them to do so. (Licenses cost $20, and state-issued ID cards, which do not confer the right to drive, cost $13. Both require the resident to present a social security card, birth certificate, and proof of residency).
Students, meanwhile, come from all over the nation---nonetheless, if they don't have an ID issued by the state of Mississippi, they'll be ineligible to vote. Finally, seniors (many of whom no longer drive) frequently lack both driver licenses and proof of identity (like original birth certificates). Last week, a 93-year-old woman in Tennessee was denied the right to vote because she could not produce a birth certificate, a document that was not routinely issued when she was born.
The Mississippi law could, of course, be overturned; the state has asked the US Justice Department to review and reject the law. The department overturned a similar voter-ID law, this one in South Carolina, earlier this month on the grounds that it discriminated against minorities.
