Voter ID Battle Shifts to Proof of Citizenship

NY Times ^ | May 12, 2008 | IAN URBINA

[neverdem]

The battle over voting rights will expand this week as lawmakers in Missouri are expected to support a proposed constitutional amendment to enable election officials to require proof of citizenship from anyone registering to vote.

The measure would allow far more rigorous demands than the voter ID requirement recently upheld by the Supreme Court, in which voters had to prove their identity with a government-issued card.

Sponsors of the amendment — which requires the approval of voters to go into effect, possibly in an August referendum — say it is part of an effort to prevent illegal immigrants from affecting the political process. Critics say the measure could lead to the disenfranchisement of tens of thousands of legal residents who would find it difficult to prove their citizenship.

Voting experts say the Missouri amendment represents the next logical step for those who have supported stronger voter ID requirements and the next battleground in how elections are conducted. Similar measures requiring proof of citizenship are being considered in at least 19 state legislatures. Bills in Florida, Kansas, Oklahoma and South Carolina have strong support. But only in Missouri does the requirement have a chance of taking effect before the presidential election.

In Arizona, the only state that requires proof of citizenship to register to vote, more than 38,000 voter registration applications have been thrown out since the state adopted its measure in 2004. That number was included in election data obtained through a lawsuit filed by voting rights advocates and provided to The New York Times. More than 70 percent of those registrations came from people who stated under oath that they were born in the United States, the data showed.

Already, 25 states, including Missouri, require some form of identification at the polls. Seven of those states require or can...

[Rafterman]

It’s about time... proof of citizenship to vote should be federal law, not just state.

[ComputerGuy]

...tens of thousands of legal residents who would find it difficult to prove their citizenship...

Legal residents aren't citizens.

[padre35]

Good, I think they may going for a bridge to far, that a ID requirement is sufficient and Constitutional, but at least they are keeping the issue on the front burner.

[bcsco]

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[gridlock]

In Arizona, the only state that requires proof of citizenship to register to vote, more than 38,000 voter registration applications have been thrown out since the state adopted its measure in 2004. That number was included in election data obtained through a lawsuit filed by voting rights advocates and provided to The New York Times. More than 70 percent of those registrations came from people who stated under oath that they were born in the United States, the data showed.

How can anybody look at the denial of these 38,000 voter registrations as anything other than an unalloyed good?

[PapaBear3625]

In Arizona, the only state that requires proof of citizenship to register to vote, more than 38,000 voter registration applications have been thrown out since the state adopted its measure in 2004. That number was included in election data obtained through a lawsuit filed by voting rights advocates and provided to The New York Times. More than 70 percent of those registrations came from people who stated under oath that they were born in the United States, the data showed.

It would be nice if the state made a rigorous investigation into that 70% -- and vigorously prosecute anybody who lied

[Puppage]

Legal residents aren't citizens

That's a damn good point.

[Guenevere]

Thanks bcsco

[bcsco]

My pleasure :)

[Ben Ficklin]

That 38,000 wasn't illegal.

It was because a new registration form was adopted, but everyone was submitting the old form, and the old form was rejected. The problem was made worse because they were tardy in getting the new form out.

[Paige]

About time!

[gridlock]

Well, there is no excuse for incompetence.

The state should efficiently register every citizen who applies to vote.

[Ben Ficklin]

It is hard to call them incompetent when the form they picked up at the Post Office was the wrong one.

[kc8ukw]

I’m sorry, your facts don’t fit our agenda.

[angkor]

Of one thing I am certain: anyone who’s been through the naturalization process is going to protect those U.S. citizenship documents as if they were inscribed on 24K gold.

What’s more, naturalized citizens are encourged to vote (and provided voting registration apps) AS THEY EXIT THEIR NATURALIZATION CEREMONY.

Finally, naturalized citizens are also encouraged to immediately obtain a U.S. passport and to carry their voter registration at all times. Why? Because both prove U.S. citizenship; they’re both easily replaced at not too much cost if lost;, and because getting a new naturalization certificate costs $400.00 and takes about a year.

Anyone who claims a naturalized citizen is unaware of these “tips” and is inconvenience by having to obtain proof of citizenship is lying through their teeth.

[Vigilanteman]

ComputerGuy not only makes an excellent point, he makes a key point.

Proof of citizenship?

Birth certificates have been issued by every state for more than a century? Those who don't have them can write in for them for an average price of two packs of smokes.

Naturalization certificates? Same thing.

If you are a legal resident who is not a citizen, it might cost you double that to replace your lost paperwork which allows you to remain in the country legally.

If ACORN is so concerned that their people can't afford this, all they need to do is call their buddy George Soros to write a check. But for some odd reason, it is easier to go to court and cry wolf.

[MrB]

I’ve actually had leftists argue that non-citizens/illegals should vote because they have a stake in the outcome of elections.

[MrB]

The ACORN guy wrote into the WSJ last week (Friday maybe) decrying the USSC Indiana voter ID ruling,

once again stating that there isn’t any problem with vote fraud and that this would cause undue hardship for those who should vote.

Cry me a river. ACORN has been indicted, if not convicted, of fraudulent registrations already, and everyone who does anything in our society has an ID.

[CholeraJoe]

You can get a certified copy of a birth certificate off the internet, if you know certain facts like Mother’s maiden name, date and place of birth. I’ve done it for myself several times. What these certificates DON’T have are baby’s footprints. Possession of a birth certificate is no guarantee of citizenship or identity.