The Constitution explicitly mentions voting in the 14th, 15th, 19th, 24th, and 26th Amendments. And in Article 1, Section 4 the Constitution explicitly says that although state legislatures have the right to pass their own election laws, Congress has the right to “alter” any of those state laws except for the locations of choosing Senators. Which means that it is constitutionally quite clear that Congress is the boss when it comes to election laws. That is why the Voting Rights Act of 1965 contained such tough federal enforcement measures and the 24th Amendment gave extra emphasis to outlawing poll taxes.
It is pretty clear that many Americans do not understand their own Constitution and our history of voting rights because so many people seem to think that Voter ID is a silver bullet solution to “election integrity.” First of all, if that were true there would not be so many fake IDs floating around – just ask teens and underage college students. In fact, there are millions more fake IDs being carried around and used to obtain illegal access to goods, places, or activities on any given day than there are intentionally fraudulent votes cast in any election cycle. And some of the states with the strictest Voter ID laws also are among the top states that make it easy for someone to obtain a fake ID. It would seem that Voter ID is not the fool-proof “solution” that its supports believe it is?
In addition, obtaining a state-issued ID is not “free.” It often requires certified copies of a birth, adoption, or naturalized citizen certificate. And for many women it may also require copies of marriage or divorce decrees to prove name changes. Certified copies cost money (one certified copy of a birth certificate in my county costs $26), which could be considered to be a poll tax if that’s the only thing keeping you from voting. The legal (Voting Rights Act) and constitutional (24th Amendment) prohibitions of poll taxes implies that we should keep how many times you have to provide such fee-based documents to a minimum – as in once, when you first register to vote.
It’s dismaying how many people are so willing to toss away due process when it comes to the fundamental, constitutionally protected right to vote. If you proved you were eligible at the time you registered to vote, then every election after that if your name is listed as a registered voter then you should be presumed innocent and the onus should be on the state to prove that you are not who you say you are. Due process should not be discarded when it comes to any fundamental right and yet many folks are proposing exactly that when it comes to voting rights, and not just in regard to Voter ID.
For instance, you should not lose your right to vote via improper purging of voter rolls just because you didn’t exercise your right to vote for awhile. That is like saying you should lose your right to due process because you have not committed a crime for awhile. Situational logic makes for situational due process, which is potentially discriminatory and unconstitutional.
The continued push to pass voter suppression laws in many states and the misperceptions and convoluted logic surrounding Voter ID requires a reread of the actual Constitution by most folks as well as a review of what “due process” actually is and why it should not be selectively denied when it comes to voting rights.
https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/constitution-transcript
https://www.ourdocuments.gov/doc.php?flash=false&doc=100
https://fakeidboss.net/most-common-fake-id-states-list/
https://www.centerforalcoholpolicy.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/FAKE-IDs-IN-AMERICA-2018.pdf
https://www.co.carver.mn.us/departments/property-finance/land-records-vitals/vital-statistics/birth-certificates https://www.apmreports.org/story/2019/10/29/georgia-voting-registration-records-removed
https://www.cnn.com/2020/09/02/politics/georgia-voter-rolls-report/index.html
https://www.maine.gov/dhhs/mecdc/public-health-systems/lho/training/Problem/due-process.pdf
https://www.britannica.com/topic/due-process
https://www.brennancenter.org/issues/ensure-every-american-can-vote/vote-suppression
