For Women Only | Main | Wictory Wednesday a day late!
October 21, 2004
This country needs a Voter ID Card
I'm frightened by all the talk of vote fraud. It seems to be here, there and everywhere.
Voter fraud undermines our free society and makes the votes of real live people less valuable than they would otherwise be.
There are several things that Congress needs to do to change this mess. It may require a Constitutional Ammendment, but keeping voting fair is worth it!
First, when someone registers to vote, they must show positive identification proving that they are a US citizen.
Second, a Voter Registration ID card will be issued to everyone who is registered - because it is an ID card, a photo of the voter will be on it. And, of course there is no cost to getting the ID Card. (thanks for that, Marybeth!)
Third, when a voter moves and registers in a new place, the old voter registration ID will be returned to the county of origin (so that voter can be taken off the polls).
And last, only volunteers or county officials can register voters - this foolishness about one party or another paying people per voter registered has got to stop. Anytime you bring money into the picture, there will be people who cheat.
Yes, I know that the ACLU doesn't think it is fair to ask for Identification when voting, but we have to show ID for almost everything else we do - why not for the most important act we as citizens perform?
Posted by Beth at October 21, 2004 7:05 AM
Comments
They complain that IDs cost money making it the same as a poll tax. If the voter ID cards were free with registration that would eliminate that objection...but I'm sure they would find another.
Posted by: marybeth at October 21, 2004 8:48 AM
And don't get me started on provisional balloting.
Posted by: Dave Schuler at October 21, 2004 10:02 AM
I totally agree - it's completely reasonable to require ID when you go to vote. When I registered to vote, I was sent a voter registration card, and have always carried it with me to the polls but have never been asked to show it. At very least we should be asked to show the voter registration card and one other form of identification. The potential for fraud is huge the way things are currently run.
Posted by: songstress7 at October 21, 2004 11:04 AM
Great post, Beth. Now if only someone important would pay attention to this topic.
Posted by: Angela at October 22, 2004 12:07 AM