Can mentally retarded individuals vote? (Vanity)

March 20, 2009 | 2ndDivisionVet

[2ndDivisionVet]

Can someone here enlighten me on this matter? Are there rules as to which of these folks can vote and under which circumstances? I know that Dear Leader ticked off the families and friends of Special Olympians and the disabled in general last night, but will many of the MR community be able to vote against him? Forgive me if my language isn't as PC as some would like, as I don't play that game. Thanks!

[bayliving]

Given the results of this last election I would say that they vote in LARGE numbers.

[Chode]

yes, and most of them vote absent ballot... guess who fills out the ballot???

[Caramelgal]

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 prohibits literacy tests, character tests, and poll taxes.

I believe you are correct. Any legal citizen having reached the age of majority and legally registered to vote can legally vote.

I don’t know however if it may be questionable if an individual is of such limited mental capacity as to not be able to fill out a voter registration application and sign it on their own volition and without any understanding of what they are signing or why or if they require another individual to go into the voter’s booth with them to cast their vote for them with only a presumption of how they might or should vote. The same could be said for someone in a coma for instance. The same could be said for such individuals entering into a legally binding contract.

That is IMO different from people with physical disabilities who have the mental capacity to form informed opinions but may need the assistance of another to exercise their choice – a blind and or deaf person, a quadriplegic or someone with MLS or such.

On the other hand, there are people with Downs Syndrome who can function quite independently and hold jobs and pay taxes so I for one would not deny them their right.

In the past literacy tests, character tests and poll taxes were designed specifically to prevent and discriminate against minorities – blacks and to a lessor extent women from voting.

And literacy, character and the ability to pay a poll tax does not prevent liberals from voting as I’ve know quite a few well educated, upstanding and wealthy citizens who make stupid choices when it comes to elections. :) ,

[hoe_cake]

Obviously the meaning of “incompetent” is loose and arbitrary, looking at our current administration.

Thanks for the link.

[crazyhorse691]

The answer to your question is Yes...basically, anything remotely human over 18 in the US can vote(I have seen drug addled, bug infested,seeping sored, bridge trolls with absentee ballots {which they will sell for cigarettes}).

[LifeComesFirst]

I work with MR/DD adults and yes they certainly vote, and those I work with and who discussed the election (yes, they follow current events) were very, very pro-Obama last year. Not a scientific poll, but there it is.

Nor should they have the right to vote taken away, just in case anybody’s thinking along those lines. It’s a slippery slope to “you’re a conservative? That’s a mental illness, you can’t vote.”

Also, they are heavily encourage, almost to the point of coercion, into voting by some of the social workers. And some of them go so far as to directly campaign for Obama.

[3niner]

Can mentally retarded individuals vote?

Unfortunately, yes. They tend to vote stupidly, but so do average Americans. Just look at the people they elect.

[liberalism is suicide]

*Morally* retarded individuals *hold* offices.

[LiteKeeper]

Apparently they already have...how else can you explain the election of The Zero?

[JGA2Z]

To answer your question, yes some people who are mentally challenged can vote. It depends on if they retained their voting rights when guardianship/conservatorship was determined. Also, if they do not have a guardianship they may have all rights you and I have. My daughter has MR, but has very strong political views so her voting rights were approved by the court.

[Luke21]

Are you kidding? Look at who rules us.

[SoCalPol]

*Can mentally retarded individuals vote?*

If those who went to Public School or Universities can
why not mentally retarded.

[Chickensoup]

yes,

or some leftist votes for them.

[EDINVA]

Last November I was a Republican volunteer at our local polling place. At one point, a van pulled in with several obviously mentally retarded passengers. There was an African American driver and aide to assist them. Our neighborhood is 99.44% white and asian.

The driver/aide walked them thru the line to get their cards to cast their electronic ballots, and much was made of their casting their votes, not only by the driver/aide but by officials overseeing the voting place.

I’d never seen the driver/aide or any of the voters before and likely never will again .. at least until ‘12.

[Unlikely Hero]

As long as they aren’t declared incompetent and placed under a guardian, I believe so. One of the questions when having someone made a Ward is whether they could know enough to vote in an election or drive a car. So it stands to reason they lose the right to vote and the privilege of driving.

But I’m not sure.

[midnightcat]

I have a friend who was brain damaged in a car accident and he is able to vote. He’s a staunch conservative - even before his accident!

[Carolyn415FR]

Yes, 2nd Division Vet, mentally retarded individuals can vote. My MR child (now 20 years old) is a registered Republican and votes based on what I, as his mother and guardian, get out there and dig up on policy ideas, promises, voting records, etc. You could say I influence his vote, but it isn’t too uncommon for family members to all share the same political views. Besides, if Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck can donate to Otrauma campaigns, my MR son can vote for whomever he wants :) I wouldn’t be too surprised if Mickey and Donald didn’t vote for Otrauma, come to think of it!

[2ndDivisionVet]

I am somewhat chagrined at some of them. Whenever there’s a thread about an obese person or obesity, I expect there to be some very rude comments. Mentally retarded people are that way due to a genetic or birth defect, as I understand it, and many are much more productive than the layabouts who collect welfare, foodstamps, Section 8, etc. I know that McDonalds and Kroger have gone out of their way to hire the disabled, and I applaud them. My younger sister works with mentally challenged kids in special education.