80th Legislature: HB 626 Is Another Voter Suppression Effort Via Photo IDs, Citizenship Proof
By Vince Leibowitz on Jan 19, 2007 in 80th Legislature, Texas Legislature
State Rep. Phil King (R-Weatherford) has filed HB 626, which would create a hierarchy of voter suppression within state law.
First off, it would alter the voter registration process such that someone registering to vote would have to provide a certified copy of a document proving that the person is a U.S. Citizen.
What constitutes such proof? A birth certificate or “other document confirming birth that is acceptable in a court of law,” United States citizenship papers, or an unexpired passport.
What’s wrong with this? For one thing, the working poor don’t have an extra $10 or $20 bucks to get a certified copy of their birth certificate if they don’t already have one. This is like a poll tax on the poor who don’t have other forms of ID (which they might also not be able to afford).
Under the legislation, a mere voter registration card would no longer allow you to vote, either:
On offering to vote, a voter must present to an election officer at the polling place the voter’s voter registration certificate and a form of identification that matches a name on the statewide computerized voter registration list maintained by the secretary of state and contains the voter’s photograph. [Emphasis mine]
Don’t you love how that is worded? The photo ID part is just slipped in there at the end!
Not only is the photo ID part a problem (we’ve addressed why photo IDs are a great voter suppression technique here before, including their high cost), but the “statewide computeriszed voter registration list” is a year-2000-Florida-Style disaster waiting to happen. By creating two potentially different lists (county and statewide), you have the possibility that the state list can be purged when the county list is not. Thus, people legitimately registered by their county registrar may not be on the “computerized list.”
And, check out this tidbit of new language (which I’ve underlined):
(d) If the voter’s name is on the precinct list of registered voters and the voter’s identity can be verified from the proof presented, the voter shall be accepted for voting.
What? This only makes it easier for election officials to say, “Well, I just can’t verify this is you!” What if you look different than your photo ID picture? What if you went gray or grew a beard or shaved your head or gained 200 pounds? This isn’t going to fly in any way, shape or form. The previous language was sufficient and didn’t serve to disenfranchise people.
That, “if the voter’s identity can be verified from the proof presented.” is tossed by this bill into the Election Code in other places fairly liberally in other places, too.
This bill also makes it even easier to discount provisional ballots! For your provisional ballot to be considered, you have to have presented proof of identification!
Even more odd, if you didn’t prevent ID and had to vote provisionally, you will have five days from the casting of the vote to submit your ID! How long could this delay the final results of close elections?
These voter suppression bills are very high on the republican legislative agenda this session. Sec. of State Roger Williams supports them and will be working hard behind the scenes to pass them. The makeup of the Elections Committee will be crucial this session.