11 States Trying Really Hard to Keep Poor, Black, and Student Voters From Voting

[marmar]

AlterNet / By Sarah Jaffe

11 States Trying Really Hard to Keep Poor, Black, and Student Voters From Voting
The 2012 election is closer than you think--and just in time, states are passing a host of new bills aimed at making it harder to vote.

July 18, 2011 |


Across the country, new Republican governors have found the policies that they're enacting are less popular than the promises on which they campaigned.

Voters are experiencing extensive buyer's remorse in state after state, but while Republicans maintain control, they're doing everything in their power to consolidate their power. And one of the best ways to ensure future victories is to make sure voters who oppose you don't make it to the polls in the first place.

So under the pretense that "voter fraud" (which is basically nonexistent) is a serious problem, conservative governors and state legislatures are pushing through laws that severely limit access to the vote. from the elimination of same-day voter registration to unduly strict voter ID requirements. These may not sound like that big of a deal. But when it comes to on-the-ground voting patterns, they can substantially impact turnout.

It just so happens that these laws overwhelmingly target groups that tend to vote for Democrats: students, people of color, lower-income folks, and urban residents. .............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.alternet.org/story/151687/11_states_trying_really_hard_to_keep_poor%2C_black%2C_and_student_voters_from_voting/

[liberal N proud]

1. Conservative assholes know the only way they can win an election

is either cheat or stop people from voting.

[The Big Vetolski]

2. One of the ID's they are trying to ban in Ohio for voting purposes is

the student ID. That's mainly because of Ohio State. Lots of students come from other states and keep that state's drivers license, and then use their college ID to vote in Ohio. They're not exactly a conservative bunch. Therefore, disenfranchise them!

Fortunately, as the article said, that bill looks like it is going to be put on hold until the voters, under the old system, can have a referendum on it.

[Doctor_J]

3. Paging AG Holder

Please take a break from prosecuting pot smokers and round up these criminals.

[pscot]

4. K&R

[bemildred]

5. They are going to need to fix more than eleven. nt

[louslobbs]

6. This is what Republicans do best, gerrymander, poll tax, voting machines with no paper trails, fake

Democrat robo calling telling people they don't need to vote, Democratic phone bank jamming, voting machines that flip Democratic votes to Republican, purging certain voters from the rolls, scaring young people from going to their polling places by intimating that law enforcement is using the polling place to catch scofflaws, criminals or whoever, caging, and anything else they can think of to disenfranchise the vote to make it easier for them to steal an election to gain or maintain power. These are really sick, twisted, people we're dealing with and they will do anything, including forcing through laws in the states where they have total control to steal an election. Never mind about voter fraud and the need for ID's, they should focus on election fraud and those who can rig the election from inside, but then they'd have to focus on their own crimes and the crimes of their corporate masters and we all know where that would go.
Lou

[intheflow]

7. K&R. n/t

[Politicalboi]

8. We need to construct federal buildings

That people use only to vote at, with electric tallies so everyone can see the results as the people vote with a matching head count. Give us a week or month to vote with no "just found" ballots that pop up magically. Make results available online and with a paper trail. This could all be done by 2012 elections. And people would also be able to register that same day. Have camera's everywhere while tallying the votes. The votes would NEVER be allowed to be taken anywhere in a U-Haul Truck. Gore/Bush 2000