Today, the Georgia State Senate took a step backwards in time. In its ongoing struggle to stop the tide of change. the Republicans passed SB 86 that would require documentary proof of citizenship in order to register to vote. Here's how the issue really breaks down (thanks to the Polly McKinney, ED of the League of Women Voters!):
The new law will mean that in order to register to vote, one must present a birth certificate, passport, naturalization papers or driver's license which proves citizenship.
You can expect that countless U.S. citizens will be needlessly inconvenienced and, as a result of the increased hassle, simply choose not to register to vote.
In addition to the cumbersome nature of the bill, there are other problems with such legislation:
- Requiring documentary proof of citizen violates the National Voter Registration Act.
- Creates a Poll Tax by forcing people who are missing their birth certificates or naturalization papers to have to buy new ones.
Sadly, we can expect more efforts to thwart democracy in Georgia by those who are afraid to have an empowered electorate. But, as Dr. Lowery said today, "We are at the beginning of a change in Georgia politics - it's coming." I can hardly wait.
Posts
3 comments:
Gee, actually asking people to prove who they are, what an inconvenience... You left out the part about cutting down on people lying and cheating. And, yes, that does go on.
There are no proven cases of in-person voting fraud in Georgia. That is a false argument. It's a felony in any event. Lying and cheating in voting is much more sophisticated than a person showing up and claiming to be someone else. The voting machines have been proven unreliable and open to manipulation and there have been some cases of voting fraud involving absentee ballots. But, our Republican led legislature seems unconcerned with those issues and instead chooses to try to suppress the vote of those typically disenfranchised. Why are they afraid of democracy where we maximize participation?
Post a Comment