Interesting GOP English/Spanish online voting form discrepancies

[MindLikeAParachute]

I happened to be poking around on the GOP site, and got curious about the differences between what they present to English-speaking visitors and what they present to Spanish-speaking visitors. I then saw they had something about voter registration, so I decided to take a look at that. Both were pretty much the same, except where it asks for an ID number.

In English it asks for ID Number

http://www.gop.com/RegisterToVote/Information.aspx?state=TX

But in Spanish it asks for NÚMERO DE SEGURO SOCIAL (Social Security number)

http://www.gop.com/Espanol/RegisterToVote/Information.aspx?state=TX

(Note, if you try the base link, you have to pick a state, and I picked Texas).

Now, on either of these, if you click the term, you get the same explanation (except that the one for Espanol is, obviously, written in Spanish), which is:

You must provide your driver’s license number to register to vote. If you do not have a driver’s license then you will have to provide at least the last four digits of your social security number. If you have neither, please write “NONE” on the form. A unique identifying number will instead be assigned to you by your State.

But that's not what the Spanish language form asks for. It asks for NÚMERO DE SEGURO SOCIAL, implying your full social security number (not just the last four digits), and doesn't even give you the impression a drivers license number is an option. It could have asked for "Número de la identificación", which is basically "ID number", but it doesn't. So, if I was a Spanish-speaking voter, I might conclude that without a whole social security number, I couldn't register to vote. Or do they think the Spanish speakers might not have drivers licenses? Or is it a validation thing, or simply an honest translation error? I'd like to think they wouldn't want to dissuade the Spanish-speaking voters from registering on their site, but... ??

This may or may not mean anything, but if anyone has any thoughts, pitch them out.

[Igel]

1. The javascript pop up seems to resolve the issue:

"Debe proporcionar su número de licencia de conducir Para inscribirse para votar. Si no tiene una licencia de conducir, entonces tendrá que proporcionar por lo menos los últimos cuatro dígitos de su número de seguro social. Si no tiene ninguno, sírvase escribir NONE en el formulario. En vez, el estado le asignará un número único de identidad."

You're right, however: the Spanish "SSN" line is strange. But I think the English is even stranger, since I simply have nothing I think of as an "ID number". The popup for that:
"You must provide your driver’s license number to register to vote. If you do not have a driver’s license then you will have to provide at least the last four digits of your social security number. If you have neither, please write “NONE” on the form. A unique identifying number will instead be assigned to you by your State."

On edit: The Spanish sounds strange to my non-native ears. Too much like a translation, perhaps the translator was a bit too bound by the English original?

[Tab]

2. Yes, but you would only use the popup

if you were wondering what qualified as an "ID number".

If it's specifically asking for a SS# you'd be less likely to look up the explanation.

[Wilms]

3. Interesting catch. n/t