For starters I have to apologize to all for not having posted anything in some time. I do hope to post more often again, life as we all know at times can get rough. But now onto the point of this post.
Much has made the news in recent months about voting rights and voter verification as many states have adopted or are enforcing Voter ID checks to the dismay of many. This is not going to be so much as a complete Constitutional analysis or opinion but rather from the perspective of Liberty and Integrity, and is something I touched base on a couple years back.
Voter ID and Suffrage
The aspect of requiring an ID is an interesting one, because for some it appears to be a somewhat “common sense” measure to ensure the person casting a ballot is in fact the person who registered to do so in the first place. But it also presents in my opinion a legitimate Liberty aspect, can a Government compel someone to acquire a government issued document in order to exercise their Constitutionally protected act of voting? Or put in another perspective, if a person does not wish to engage with their government and desires to be part of altering it to that position, is it right to compel them to engage and provide articles to the government (proof of Identity to get an ID) to obtain a government issued document in order to vote? Choosing to engage in one’s Constitutional right is no legitimate means to forcibly remove another protection or permit government to conduct an other wise prohibited act. In short, simply because someone wants to exercise their right is not justification to say they surrendered any other right or give an excuse for government to do something it can’t.
Voting Integrity
Many who oppose Voter ID requirements quickly point to the lack or admittingly very small amount of documented voter fraud. But for me, the issue in this regard is not how often it does or does not happen, it is the fact it does happen at all, rather because it does happen1 to me is the issue. It is not the common election where one candidate wins by significant margins where voter fraud can not decide the outcome, but in the very close elections where even small voter fraud can sway who the victor is.
Since 2000 no less then Five Federal or State wide elections have been decided by less than 1,000 votes (2000 FL Presidential Electoral, 2004 Washington Governor, 2006 Vermont Auditor, 2006 FL 13th District, 2008 Minnesota Senate). It is THESE type of elections where the margin of winning and therefore error is so small, complete and total integrity of the Election system must be maintained to have the full faith in the final vote. The largest margin of these elections had over 230,000 votes, with a margin of 369, 0.04% for 2006 FL 13th, while the smallest margin was from 6,000,000 ballots and a 537 vote margin 0.009% in 2000 FL electoral. With such small margins of victory and defeat, certainty that ALL ballots are 100% legitimate or else it leaves in doubt who truly has won and may genuinely disenfranchise those who feel they won, but had it taken from them through fraud.
Concluding Opinion
Though I do have many reservations of Voter ID laws, since a bureaucratic system can truly disenfranchise some voters, I do feel the integrity of the Electorate system as a whole is also vitally important the direct violation of all individual rights in electorate voter fraud cannot be ignored. Voter ID Laws though do require an individual to acquire of Government document, it is the lowest viable level to maintain full Liberty (provided every voter is fully capable and without intrusion and on demand able to get the appropriate ID without requirements past that of what is needed to register to vote), and also protects the integrity of the voting system.
It is not the landslide elections Voter ID laws are needed for, it is the closest elections they are a MUST for, to ensure the integrity that every Vote counts and every Vote is legitimate.
Note 1: Indiana Election Chief convicted of Voter Fraud, Chicago Tribune February 4, 2012
No comments :
Post a Comment