• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • AMERICAN DEMOCRACY
  • WORLD DEMOCRACY
  • POLITICAL ART
  • more
    • election technology
    • money politics
    • political dissidents
    • THIRD PARTY
      • third party central
      • green party
      • justice party
      • libertarian party
    • voting methods
  • DC INFO
    • author central
    • about
    • advertise with DC
    • contact
    • privacy policy

Democracy Chronicles

Voter ID: An Objective Approach to a Subjective Debate

by Josh Stewart - August 11, 2012

FacebookTweetLinkedInPin

Voter ID Required

Vote early and vote often.  Those are the words so often sarcastically repeated when referencing the issue of voter fraud. Recently, several states have created legislation that will ostensibly help to quell the latter part of that aphorism. The primary aspect of these laws is the requirement of some manner of voter ID. While the specifics differ from state to state, this key provision has become quite a matter of contention. And, as is all too often the case, the line between the two prevailing political parties is drawn.

Republicans, comprising the majority of proponents, feel that photo identification is necessary to prevent voter fraud. Democrats, on the other hand, are concerned that this new requirement will adversely affect a large portion of their voter base—primarily minorities, the underprivileged, and students.

Furthermore, opponents draw attention to a myriad of studies that purport to show a minimal existence of blatant voter fraud ¹. Often, each potential case is ultimately classified as one of a number of logical causes and not, in fact, patently fraudulent; opponents use this as further evidence that photo identification is not necessary. However, each supposedly “logical cause” of the appearance of voter fraud — clerical errors, copying errors or any of a number of human errors — provides further evidence of the need for a standardized form of identification.

Voter ID Objective
Receipt for payment of poll tax – Form printed by government of Jefferson Parish, Louisiana in 1910s, filled out 1917. Part of display of old ephemera on wall of cafe in Gretna, Louisiana, photographed by Infrogmation (talk)

This can minimize the archaic methods currently used to authenticate voters. Why is it in the age of smart phones and other state of the art technology we seem to be unable to provide our citizens with a secure and verifiable method to voice our opinions at the polls?

The simple fact is that a driver’s license, or similar state-issued identification, with its electronic verification ability, is one step toward creating an election process that has minimal cases of “fraud” or error. A standard picture ID connects the voter to the vote; it’s as simple as that.

Yet, many feel that such a requirement would “squelch” the votes of students, indigents, and minorities ². However, new state laws in Indiana and several other states are allowing for extenuating circumstances regarding those who fail to bring such identification. And while various studies report that new stricter voting laws—such as Indiana’s—disproportionately affect minorities and the less fortunate, a study from Harvard reveals that voter ID laws cannot singularly account for lower voter turnout³.

As is often the case with politically-charged issues, the arguments at the margins tend to drown out the substance of the debate. There are anecdotal tales on each side: the poor elderly woman in a rural town who can no longer vote because she misplaced her birth certificate; the volunteer who registered ‘Mickey Mouse’ as a voter in previous elections.

Both sides claim preeminence on the issue; however, what each fails to acknowledge is that the debate overshadows a simple truth: state-issued photo identification will provide a broad layer of voter security. It should go without saying that their usefulness has been widely acknowledged for some time now regarding age-restricted purchases, banking transactions, etc. Is there any doubt that the honorable act of voting shouldn’t be treated with any less regard than these?

Follow the Voter ID Instructions!
Follow the Instructions!

However, there is an inescapable fact that must be addressed when contemplating such requirements as voter ID’s: such an obligation has an unquestionably greater affect on a select portion of society. No doubt for some, it is not merely a matter of hopping in the car and driving down the street to the local DMV to obtain a driver’s license of some other state-issued identification.

Presumably, most who do not possess such ID’s also do not have vehicles. For many, it would require a trip via public transportation (if available) and the added costs of reproducing verification such as a birth certificate, in addition to the direct cost of the voter ID itself.

Voter ID: An Objective Approach

Yet these are details that have been—and continually will be—addressed in a variety of ways. In many communities, for instance, churches and other volunteer organizations provide transportation to and from local DMV’s. Furthermore, some groups provide assistance with gathering and obtaining the proper documentation required to procure identification. Additionally, groups such as Voting For America and the Family Research Council, which assist in voter registration, could easily begin to provide assistance helping those who need it in this manner.

These inconveniences are palpable to those whom they affect; however, they can be managed in a way that minimizes their effects on voter disenfranchisement and should not derail a process that leads to universal voter ID possession.   A just solution can also ensure that American citizens who want to vote do not have undue difficultly doing so, no matter their social status.  However, when the partisan bickering and conjectured storytelling are stripped away, what remains is an objective reality that will foster common sense solutions.

LINKS

 

  1. Levitt, Justin. “The Truth About Voter Fraud.” Brennan Center for Justice. http://brennan.3cdn.net/e20e4210db075b482b_wcm6ib0hl.pdf Retrieved 6 August 2012.
  2. Irvine, Martha. “Could tougher voting laws squelch the youth vote?” Associated Press.
  3. de Alth, Shelley. “ID at the Polls: Assessing the Impact of Recent State Voter ID Laws on Voter Turnout.”September, 2011.
  4. Journalists Resource, Retrieved 3 August 2011.

 

See more at our American Democracy page!

FacebookTweetLinkedInPin

Filed Under: DC Authors Tagged With: Voter Access, Voter ID, Voter Registration

About Josh Stewart

Josh Stewart is a married father of two. His current profession is a firefighter and paramedic in Central Florida for the last 10 years. He is currently a graduate student at University of Central Florida working on a masters’ degree in American and comparative policy. His interests include policy formulation theory and voter sentiment.

Some highlighted Democracy Chronicles topics

Africa American Corruption American Local Elections American State Elections Asia Capitalism and Big Business Celebrity Politics China Democracy Charity Democracy Protests Democrats Dictatorships Education Election History Election Methods Election Security Election Transparency Europe Internet and Democracy Journalism and Free Speech Middle East Minority Voting Rights Money Politics New York City and State Elections Political Artwork Political Dissidents Political Lobbying Redistricting Republicans Russia Socialism and Labor Social Media and Democracy South America Spying and Privacy Supreme Court Third Party Voter Access Voter ID Voter Registration Voter Suppression Voter Turnout Voting Technology Women Voting Rights Worldwide Worldwide Corruption

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Home | DC AUTHORS | Voter ID: An Objective Approach to a Subjective Debate

Primary Sidebar

Advertise button

Courts Off The Deep End, Again

By Andrew Straw February 1, 2023

Closing the courts, shutting down dissent, and violating the rights of whistleblowers. These are not the actions of an open, free society.

The Christian Evangelical Church

By Jack Jones January 22, 2023

I am not against Big Business having a voice, just not all the voices, and especially not an impersonator pretending to speak for God.

democracy chronicles newsletter

DC AUTHORS

No One In Monterey County Is Good Enough To Serve In Legislature

By Joe Mathews January 9, 2023

California’s “democratic reforms” have left a place as… [key] as Monterey County without any state representation from one of its own.

In America, the Joe-mocracy Rules

By Joe Mathews December 27, 2022

A republic? A democracy? No, our country is an avuncular autocracy run by old guys named joe.

Property Rights, Indiana-Style

By Andrew Straw December 24, 2022

Indiana’s justices have replaced constitutional property rights with ad hominem politics. Replacing them starts with better governors.

To The American Oligarchs: Lay Off Us

By Jack Jones December 21, 2022

No matter how many jobs are ruthlessly pulled out from under us, we are still going to do what it takes to put food on the table.

Indiana’s Irrational Ballot Access System

By Andrew Straw December 4, 2022

Opposing the potential 2024 retention of the Chief Justice Loretta Rush will be key to preventing disability discrimination bad blood in Indiana courts.

Federal Judge Strikes Down Biden’s Loan Forgiveness program

By Jack Jones November 24, 2022

What is unlawful is the Texas federal judge’s decision to strike down President Biden’s loan forgiveness program, not the program itself.

DeSantis Battles Trump in Florida Steel Cage Match

By Steve Schneider November 20, 2022

We take you now to the much-anticipated DeSantis-Trump steel cage match, in which “DeSanctimonious” has promised to “kick Trump’s ass.”

MORE FROM OUR AUTHORS

VISIT OUR POLITICAL ART SECTION:

dc political art

DEMOCRACY CULTURE

Russian Wagner Boss Acknowledges Comparison With Rasputin

Russian Wagner Boss Acknowledges Comparison With Rasputin

January 30, 2023

Russian mercenary boss Yevgeny Prigozhin responded to comparisons [with]…Rasputin who treated the son of the last tsar for haemophilia.

ChatGPT Is Changing Education, AI Experts Say

ChatGPT Is Changing Education, AI Experts Say

January 30, 2023

Newly-launched AI-powered chatbot ChatGPT is changing the internet landscape. It presents several opportunities, including in education.

Girl Scouts Earn Democracy Badge At Workshop In Salina

Girl Scouts Earn Democracy Badge At Workshop In Salina

January 26, 2023

The workshop assisted Girl Scouts in grades K–10 in earning their Democracy Badge through learning activities on democracy.

Study: Media Can Reduce Polarization By Telling Personal Stories

Study: Media Can Reduce Polarization By Telling Personal Stories

January 26, 2023

Sharing personal experiences and pairing them with facts reduces political dehumanization and increases political tolerance.

FEC Hikes Contribution Limits Ahead Of 2024 Election Cycle

Study: 2020 Election Resulted In Increased Anxiety And Depression

January 7, 2023

A review of 2020 Household Pulse Survey data reveals that as an election nears, people in [America] report more depression and anxiety.

MORE CULTURE

VISIT OUR US DEMOCRACY SECTION:

American Democracy