GA's Shame Of A Voting Law (you now have to pay to vote?):

[babylonsister]

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/18/opinion/l18vote.html

From the NYTimes LTTE today:

To the Editor:

Re "Georgia's New Poll Tax" (editorial, Sept. 12):

Georgia should set an example and provide free voting ID cards. It is unconscionable that a state would charge residents for a voter ID.

The Department of Motor Vehicles or the Department of Human Resources could provide a simple ID with proof of identity. Human Resources already requires identification to receive state services. How much harder is it to take a picture?

Standard proof of identity and proof of residency should be all that is needed to obtain this ID.

As a former Georgia resident, I know that each county has a D.M.V. and a human services department that should be available for this purpose. Georgia needs to be a progressive example to the rest of the country.

This law in its current form faces an inevitable court challenge. Can Georgia afford to lay open its old wounds for the world to see? I think not.



To the Editor:

Georgia's new voter ID law purports to address fraud, but it is clearly intended to discourage poor people from voting. Why else charge $20 for a five-year card but $35 for a 10-year card? The cost of printing the two cards is the same.





http://www.wpherald.com/storyview.php?StoryID=20050904-091529-6543r

Georgia voter-ID statute assailed
By Brian DeBose
The Washington Times
Published September 4, 2005


WASHINGTON -- A new voter-identification law in Georgia that recently was approved by the Justice Department has angered civil rights groups, which say it will disenfranchise blacks, the elderly and rural voters.

State legislators said the new law requiring voters to present a photo identification, such as a driver's license or a state school ID, will prevent voter fraud and keep noncitizens from voting.


"We just thought that it was a common-sense measure, given a pattern of voter fraud over time in Georgia," said state Senate Majority Leader Bill Stephens, a Republican. "Our existing law that was in place allowed for 17 different forms of so-called 'identification.'"

Mr. Stephens cited investigations showing numerous instances of voter fraud, including a 1998 state Senate election in which election officials "miraculously" discovered 151 previously uncounted ballots three days after the Democratic incumbent was defeated.
more...

[TallahasseeGrannie]

1. Should be illegal to do that. IMO n/t

[CottonBear]

2. Only approx. 1/3 of our counties have places to get a voter ID or Ga DL.

(No place exists in Atlanta which is a Democratic city with a large population of poor, black people.) :(

The problem is not "voter fraud." the problem is ELECTION fraud. We were the first state in the US to go 100% Diebold (thanks to our Democratic SOS, Cathy Cox. What the hell was she thinking?) and after that the Republicans won an office never held since post-civil war reconstruction: the governorship.
:(
Sonny Perdue, Saxby Cahmblis and Johnny Isakson are old time Southern Democrats who turned into Republicans in recent years. They are old, racist Southern white men.
:grr:
I personally told Perdue that I would not vote for him because he is a Republican. Boy did that feel good. He got "elected" anyway.
:grr:

[Mistress Quickly]

3. When the whole story isn't reported

it makes us unbelievable.

http://www.georgia.gov/00/article/0,2086,4802_4961_41800330,00.html
Georgia Identification Cards are $20.00 for a five-year or $35.00 for a ten-year card. Those who are indigent may request a free ID Card. Documentation is required from each applicant to verify personal identity, Georgia residency and citizenship. For most, this is satisfied with an original birth certificate plus a rental agreement or bank statement. For a complete list of acceptable documents visit, www.dds.ga.gov.

But who decides who is indigent?


The best thing to do is to make sure people know about and can get to the mobile id issuing van on its tour:

GLOW Bus Starts Rolling Sept. 6

The mobile licensing GLOW (Georgia Licensing On Wheels) bus will begin its statewide travel beginning Tues., Sept. 6 in Augusta, Richmond County. The bus will be located at the Augusta Richmond Civic Center, 601 7th St., Augusta, Georgia, 30901, on Tues., Sept. 6 and Wed., Sept. 7 from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. The bus has the capability to issue 200 identification cards each day. The bus will not be providing any other licensing services other than Georgia Identification Cards.

The GLOW Bus will be in Burke County on Thurs., Sept. 8 from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. – Burke County Office Park, 715 West 6th St., Waynesboro, Georgia.