Voter fraud and voter disenfranchisement

As many people here may be aware, the Republicans have been trying to disenfranchise young and minority voters with voter ID laws (college IDs usually don't count under such laws and minorities, especially blacks and latinos are substantially less likely to have valid government ID than whites) and using the spectre of voter fraud as justification. Now, my questions are what are your thoughts on this? particularly do you think voter fraud is a substantial problem in America and do you think the measures taken by the GOP are justifiable?

Of course then there's other election law dicking around that's going on (the GOP wants to make Nebraska's electoral votes into winner takes all (a rather petty gain if they do achieve it) and make Pennsylvania distribute it's electoral votes proportionately). This would all be fine and dandy if they were at least consistent about it.

I personally don't think voter fraud's that big of a problem in America (at least as a percentage of votes cast), though we should stop the dead from voting already. I'm pretty sure whole damn thing's just a bunch of political asshatery.

well, it mostly has to do with the pervading ideal among the republican party that "voters dont vote whats "good for them, thereforer we'll force them to"

It's really just another thing that Nixonist-Reaganist Republicans have done.

Voter disenfranchisment is a big problem here.

Even though the current government got 53% of the total votes, only 65% of people voted.

Ergo, about 35-40% of the entire country got their party (well, parties) into power.

It sucks.

Also, isn't that barring Student ID thing illegal? It sounds illegal.

Not as bad as our last election.

60% of Canadians voted, 40% of that block voted Conservative.

So 25% percent of registered voters form a mandate for a landslide of voting age Canadians voted Conservative, and they get amajority.

edited 28th Sep '11 1:35:21 PM by Erock

Nope, or at least it hasn't been ruled as such by the courts yet. At least in Texas, however, concealed carry permits do count unlike student ID.

I'm fine, though, since Nebraska hasn't passed any such laws and I have valid ID.

edited 28th Sep '11 1:36:29 PM by Balmung

@ Erock. Oh, right, you Canadians use the system we use.

FPTP bloody sucks, don't it?

Apparently, your Tories make my Tories look competent.

Harper sounds like Blair in his final days of office, IMO.

@ Bal. Does this mean they can't vote in presidential elections? Or is it just local/county/state that they can't?

It means they can't vote in any election.

So, to combat low levels of voter participation, you disallow the group of people where participation is falling?

Great policy.

Theoretically good idea being implemented for the wrong reasons, which cannot be done well, and which is unnecessary given the actual rate of voter fraud, if I recall correctly...

Voter Fraud is a big problem amongst organizations. It's almost never done by individuals.

Consider that in the last election, Mickey Mouse was able to get away with casting a vote.

@Inhopelessguy: It's not about increasing voter participation, it's specifically about decreasing voter participation. The Republicans tend to do better when fewer people vote, so they're making sure fewer people vote and they're trying to make sure that it's mostly liberals who can't cast their votes.

So it's only GOP states doing this?

Ahh, makes sense.

Isn't it unconstitutional or something? Surely not allowing university-aged people the right to vote is wrong?

Wait, I seem to have misunderstood the issue. They require a valid ID? What, like a driver's license or something else?

Well, yeah, and it's not like all of us college students have a driver's license or other government issued ID. It's not that young people aren't allowed to vote, it's that laws are being made that make it harder for, in particular, young people and minorities to vote.

Remember, often with these laws, student IDs don't usually count as valid ID.

edited 28th Sep '11 2:16:12 PM by Balmung

Do student ID's work?

I don't have anything else.

Then in many of the states with these laws, you can't vote because they usually don't count student IDs as valid ID.

What?

Hell the fuck no. I'm voting even if I have to beat my way into the booth with a cane. This is my first year and I'm not going to have it ruined by a bunch of crazy Republican fanatics.

Well, what state are you in and do you have one of those laws that allows you to register to vote at the DMV? You could pick up a state ID and register to vote all in one go if they have such a law.

I live in a Pennsylvania backwater, the only place to vote around here is City Hall which has exactly four booths.

Well, you can register at the DMV in PA, it seems (though the same Republicans often oppose such laws as well).

I don't think they've disenfranchised you yet, but they're working on it.

edited 28th Sep '11 2:32:23 PM by Balmung

Well I was going to vote for Fred Karger (a Republican, albeit very far removed from most of the party, he's gay), but this may change that.

Well, it's mostly the conservative element of the GOP (Especially ALEC and the Tea Party types) that favour this, but others might not be particularly outspoken against it. Then again, they might be, I'm not sure.

Student I Ds do not count as a "valid" ID because they do not prove you to be a citizen of the state you are in. Only that you go to a school within the state.

Students who pay out of state tuition are considered residents of the states they came from, and thus have no reason to be voting in the state they are going to school in(and should be voting via absentee ballot for their state).

If you are paying in-state tuition, then you're a resident and you shouldn't really have a student ID as your only form of identification in such a case, since you could go to any DMV in the state and get a "valid" form of identification...

Swish, I am a high school student, not a college student. I likely won't be in college by the time the next elections roll around, but I do turn 18 before then.