Same-day voter registration
This morning's Free Press has a story that says the Vermont House decided to postpone implementation of same-day voter registration until 2008.
The legislative liaison for the Vermont Municipal Clerks and Treasurers Association, Stowe Town Clerk Alison Kaiser, said that the town clerks wanted to hold off implementation until the state-wide voter registration list has all of the kinks worked out.
There is also a short article about the mixed reviews from town clerks here.
This has turned into somewhat of a partisan issue, with Democrats and Progressives supporting and Republicans opposed. The Republican opposition is not based on any kind of calculated party-based benefit/harm. It is based on a legitimate fear of voter fraud.
I am at a complete loss as to why people are unable to register by a week before the election. Especially when I have seen plenty of candidates go door to door registering voters. Anyone can go to the Superior Court and become a notary public and subsequently register people to vote. They can even sign the person up for an absentee ballot at the same time. In fact, that is how I first voted in Burlington. I lived in the Old North End and someone came to my door, registered me to vote and filled out an absentee ballot request for me. He even gave me a follow-up call to remind me to vote.
What he did not realize is that I had no desire to vote for him. He was a total phony. He looked in my living room and saw I had a little kid and immediately started talking about affordable housing and child-care subsidies. When he realized that I was not interested in how government entitlements can supposedly make my life better, he immediately started talking about how bad the sidewalks are and how he wants to fix them. He was smooth, but phony. Sorry, no vote from me. I did appreciate how easy he made it for me to vote, though. The Republican candidate didn’t do that – oh wait, there was no Republican candidate. Oh, well.
Anyway, my point is that is it so easy to register people to vote. We don’t need to unleash mass chaos at the polling places and open up the process to massive fraud potential. But what do I know?
Paul Burns, executive director of the Vermont Public Interest Research Group, said in reference to the opposition to same-day registration, "The effort that is being put into maintaining an unnecessary barrier to voting is astonishing."
What is so astonishing about wanting to prevent fraud?? What is so astonishing about wanting a system that the Town Clerks are comfortable with? Is he claiming that Town Clerks want to maintain barriers to voting? And how much of a barrier is it to require people register before the election? Rep. Peg Flory (R-Pittsford) suggested changing the registration to the Thursday before the election. That’s only five days before the election. If you have not thought about registering by then, you are probably not informed enough and probably shouldn’t be voting.
The bill still needs to be reconciled with the Senate version, which has a different implementation date, and get signed by the governor. Since the legislative session is nearing the end, that probably won’t happen this year.
The Governor’s spokesman said Friday, “The governor stands with Vermont town clerks and until they are satisfied the system will be free of fraud and easy to administer, he will continue to oppose the bill."
You can read the full Free Press story here.
What do you think about same-day voter registration?
8 comments:
I actually like the idea of same day voter registration, but share the same feeling you do in that people should register well in advance. As a society, we have become apathetic, and really don't seem to care about what is going on in the world. Same day registration will give those who have put off registering that last chance to do so. Anything that will help increase voter turnout from the pitiful national average of 35 or so percent is something I will always support.
I rambled, I need more coffee....
Fells
I agree with you in the fact that those who are not educated on the candidates or issues should not vote. I think that as a society, we just do not care enough about who is elected, or what the potential impact of a yes or no vote means.
I just don't understand how citizens can not be informed. People, voting is a right that we have, and it is one that we just don't take seriously. I have not missed a single election since I was old enough to vote. I research, read, and question the issues and candidates so I can make an informed decision. Some say one vote doesn't matter, but in reality it does. Look at the 2000 presidential election, and recently the school budget votes in Colchester and Milton. In Colchester the budget passed by FOUR votes; in Milton it was about the same. There goes the myth that a single vote does not count.
Back to the basketball games, and a freelance article for the Vermont Times........
Fells
I do not support same-day voter registration. It's just another gimmick that supposedly will get more people to vote.
We need to look at the real problems at why less and less people are not voting....it's not because they can't register at the polls.
You can't see any reason people don't register to vote before the arbitrary week before voting day? Allow me to assist:
1) People move. That's right, some people actually place shelter as a priority over voting. Even if they moved into Burlington at the beginning of February, theirs is a full plate let alone going on a mission to learn where to register to vote, where to vote, who the players are in their ward/district, and how ballot issues impact them.
Don't get me wrong; voting was a priority whenever I have moved. The same "should" apply to others. But unless we're talking about legislating people into being informed, they have the choice to opt out of electing people who make decisions for them. In a transient town like Burlington, same day voter reg makes a lot of sense.
2) Purged voter lists. The Clerk's Office will purge voter lists of those voters who have not shown up to an election in xx amount of time. Some people fall into ruts, suffer from depression, extendedly mourn the loss of a family member, or a host of other reasons for not voting for a long period of time. When the day comes that they would like to become actively involved again, pre-registration acts only as a hindrance.
3) Unfiled voter registration forms. I saw a guy at the polls March 7 who said he registered to vote at some Ben & Jerry's event but when he showed up to vote, he was unregistered. There are instances of the same happening with people who are visited by politicians. As noted by Cherity, many try to get a feel for who they are talking to in order to seek support. If that politician "registers" the person but doesn't turn in the form (or maybe the form goes missing because they are unorganized, or they have sloppy volunteers, or they didn't get all the info and don't have time to follow up), then that potential voter is left out in the cold. Same day voter reg corrects that.
4) The poor & elderly. Low-income folks today must work 2 and sometimes 3 jobs to make ends meet. When they're balancing a schedule that makes them wonder what their next meal will be and who will watch their kids while they're away at work, pre-registering to vote becomes a lesser priority. With the elderly, many cannot easily travel to City Hall and many Burlington elderly care homes do not allow politicians in to campaign (& register voters). They likely have voter reg days, but a person must then hope they have that narrow time slot available and are not sick or busy arranging health needs instead. Same day voter reg addresses most of these problems.
More reasons could be cited, but the point is clear: there is a need for same day voter registration. Republicans are quick to point out how same day voter reg makes elections prone to vast voter fraud, yet this process has been in place for years in Minnesota (& Maine too? Not sure) with few reports of fraud. Minnesota, by the way, elected a conservative Republican to the Senate after the mysterious death of liberal Democrat Paul Wellstone - using same day voter registration.
It is clear that Republicans don't want it because it will benefit demographics (low-income, young, minorities) who are not in favor with their party. Pre-registration was added as an obstacle to these same voters years ago by the two major parties in power and now it must go.
She's Right said: "You just said in one line that a Republican won in a state with same-day voter registration, then went on in the next to say Republicans oppose it because it will hurt them. You do realize that you just disproved your own point, right?"
She's right also said: "BTW, I am both young and low-income – and Republican."
Okay, let's play your little game. So basically, you just agreed that same day voter registration can benefit Republicans, is not prone to fraud, and won't hurt you or your party.
Thanks! You just negated all the points you wrote in your original post.
Let's step this down to the USA Today level of understanding for our gracious host:
She's Right said: "You just said in one line that a Republican won in a state with same-day voter registration, then went on in the next to say Republicans oppose it because it will hurt them. You do realize that you just disproved your own point, right?"
The point, actually, is that same day voter registration is no more prone to fraud than pre-registration. In fact, I highlighted Minnesota's Republican senator to support my argument AND to show that same day voter reg is not driven by left-wing partisanship (another argument you used). Therefore, the only "disproving" that took place was against your original argument. Two of 'em, in fact! Sweet....
She's Right said: "Okay, so why would I want these people to be voting???"
Oh, I don't know, maybe because they are AMERICANS! When you first got to town, how long did it take you to learn who the mayor was? Or your city councilors? See, this is the difference between Republicans and everyone else. You don't give a rat's ass if people get a fair shake or not. I just gave 4 examples of why a person might not register up to a week before the elections and you still hold that they are unworthy to meet a little-known arbitrary one week deadline.
Fine, so let's ask some different questions: What takes place in that one week that cannot take place on the same day as elections? Do you think a crack team of FBI experts do background checks on those who have registered? What ideas does our beloved GOP suggest to increase voter turnout? By saying, "why would I want these people to be voting???", are you admitting that the one week deadline is a way to weed out people who aren't informed? If so, are you then saying that all people who register prior to this one week deadline are informed? What qualifications must a person meet ahead of time that cannot be met on the day of elections?
Your audience is very curious for some insight into our precious one week deadline....
She's Right said: "It is a shame that people do not get informed, but that is not the problem you are trying to solve. That is the problem that should be solved, though, instead of just trying to get uninformed people to the polls."
So at what point does one become informed? I mean, I can sit here and say that you are not informed or else you would not hold the right-wing positions that you do. Undoubtedly, you would say the same of those on the left.
Suddenly, in claiming to seek a solution to a nebulous problem (how to get people "informed"), we will have spent wasted time to get us back to square one. There are simply people out there who disagree and who will vote on what THEY feel is important. If that means how a person looks, then that's their perogative (no matter how petty it seems to you and I).
Since every voter must register to vote, then we must keep our eye on the question at hand: what can we do to assist people in registering to vote? In turn, what can we do to ensure that elections take place without fraud or coercion?
Most people know that those who pre-register merely have their names added to a database that is then printed off and placed at the polls on election day. Nothing more. So if one proposes same day voter reg, then it can be argued that elections become *more* secure from fraud. Why? Proposals on the table ask that those who register on the same day present two forms of proof that they reside at the address they are claiming. A utility bill, a bank statement sent to that address in the person's name, a license, cancelled rent check, etc. Those are all forms that are not currently required of those who pre-register.
One might then point out: If those people can produce those forms of proof, then they certainly have time to pre-register. This is true. However, we're once again talking about what we can do to assist people in registering people to vote - AKA spreading democracy. It is not fair to say that all these late-registrants are "ill-informed" since that would be a sweeping unfounded allegation. Likely, these same day registrants will amount to a proportional cross-section of those who pre-register to vote (i.e. uninformed, informed, smart, dumb, and so on).
We can also explore why people do not vote, but that is only a part of the issue of same day voter registration. There's no reason not to have it.
There is an organization forming in Burlington to take on voter issues...low-turn-out, lack of time to get informed, no transportation, etc. etc.
I hear it will be up and running by April.
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