There are many instances where people who are indeed citizens may not have proper proof of citizenship, disproportionately among older Americans, college students, poorer Americans, victims of fires, and those who have moved around a lot. Passports are a relatively expensive document. Birth certificates and Social Security cards are fragile paper. Driver’s licenses are also not ubiquitous among people who cannot afford a car. Higher bars to be able to vote like this disenfranchise millions of Americans, often historically marginalized racial and ethnic minority communities.
It is easier to prove residency than citizenship, because most people receive physical mail which is enough proof to register to vote in many states. Homeless shelters can also provide proof of residency. And there is very little evidence of undocumented immigrants voting in national elections. It’s a Boogeyman because Republicans want to suppress the votes of marginalized groups that disproportionately vote Democrat. Undocumented immigrants tend to do their best to stay away from high risk things like breaking laws and giving the government their information because of the risk of deportation.
The should just make getting an ID card cheaper or free once per decade or something. A long list of reasons why people cannot properly ID themselves just seems like governmental failure to me.
A national ID card is the sane option, but many are afraid it will lead to further government overreach. Mostly I’ve heard that national ID cards are the first step in a national gun registry, which (they argue) inevitably leads to firearm bans and seizures.
Put an ID booth in every post office and DMV, make them free or means-adjusted. Easy peasy. There would still be some people who fall through the cracks, but it should be fewer.
In Germany you don’t have to register beforehand - as long as you are a citizen of the country you simply get an official invitation to vote via paper mail (several weeks in advance). No hassle with registration or such bullshit - you are a citizen, you are invited to vote, no exceptions.
You can vote via letter if you are not present on voting day (details are explained in the invitation), or you take your invitation and go voting in person on voting day. The invitation most of the time is good enough, you should have your ID at hand but it is checked rather lax.
Same in the Netherlands, though you definitely need to ID.
I guess that whole register to vote thing is another bullshit rule they came up with to win.
Even if you’re not registered as a citizen of the place you’re voting at (ie you’re homeless), they have ways of in-place registration, although you have to declare that you’re not voting anywhere else.
I think the reason it wouldn’t work (at least as you’ve described) is the myriad of sub-governments (and therefore smaller elections) that can exist for each voter.
My city does town council elections, my county does its board of supervisor elections, plus an occasional county ordinance vote, plus state elections and ballot initiatives, and then our federal president and congress elections all on the same ballot. If I move to a new city, up to half of the relevant people to vote for could change - probably closer to 3/4 if I moved states.
It’s always the same for every kind of election, from EU parliament down to local initiatives: The government has and does the job of telling and inviting you.
They get their information to the address that is valid at the date when the invitations are being sent.
One can order postal services to send letters from old to new addresses for a certain time (did months or so). This services are pretty commonly used so no letters get lost.
Isn’t it normal to ID yourself to be able to vote?
There are many instances where people who are indeed citizens may not have proper proof of citizenship, disproportionately among older Americans, college students, poorer Americans, victims of fires, and those who have moved around a lot. Passports are a relatively expensive document. Birth certificates and Social Security cards are fragile paper. Driver’s licenses are also not ubiquitous among people who cannot afford a car. Higher bars to be able to vote like this disenfranchise millions of Americans, often historically marginalized racial and ethnic minority communities.
It is easier to prove residency than citizenship, because most people receive physical mail which is enough proof to register to vote in many states. Homeless shelters can also provide proof of residency. And there is very little evidence of undocumented immigrants voting in national elections. It’s a Boogeyman because Republicans want to suppress the votes of marginalized groups that disproportionately vote Democrat. Undocumented immigrants tend to do their best to stay away from high risk things like breaking laws and giving the government their information because of the risk of deportation.
The should just make getting an ID card cheaper or free once per decade or something. A long list of reasons why people cannot properly ID themselves just seems like governmental failure to me.
A national ID card is the sane option, but many are afraid it will lead to further government overreach. Mostly I’ve heard that national ID cards are the first step in a national gun registry, which (they argue) inevitably leads to firearm bans and seizures.
Put an ID booth in every post office and DMV, make them free or means-adjusted. Easy peasy. There would still be some people who fall through the cracks, but it should be fewer.
Yeah, I don’t know if those people not voting is nessecarily a bad thing. They can choose, get an ID and vote or have the librulz decide without you.
In Germany you don’t have to register beforehand - as long as you are a citizen of the country you simply get an official invitation to vote via paper mail (several weeks in advance). No hassle with registration or such bullshit - you are a citizen, you are invited to vote, no exceptions.
You can vote via letter if you are not present on voting day (details are explained in the invitation), or you take your invitation and go voting in person on voting day. The invitation most of the time is good enough, you should have your ID at hand but it is checked rather lax.
Same in the Netherlands, though you definitely need to ID. I guess that whole register to vote thing is another bullshit rule they came up with to win.
Even if you’re not registered as a citizen of the place you’re voting at (ie you’re homeless), they have ways of in-place registration, although you have to declare that you’re not voting anywhere else.
I really like that notion.
I think the reason it wouldn’t work (at least as you’ve described) is the myriad of sub-governments (and therefore smaller elections) that can exist for each voter.
My city does town council elections, my county does its board of supervisor elections, plus an occasional county ordinance vote, plus state elections and ballot initiatives, and then our federal president and congress elections all on the same ballot. If I move to a new city, up to half of the relevant people to vote for could change - probably closer to 3/4 if I moved states.
It’s always the same for every kind of election, from EU parliament down to local initiatives: The government has and does the job of telling and inviting you.
But, so how does that work for people who move right around election time?
They get their information to the address that is valid at the date when the invitations are being sent.
One can order postal services to send letters from old to new addresses for a certain time (did months or so). This services are pretty commonly used so no letters get lost.