Voter ID Laws

Voter ID laws, which are being pushed by the Bush Administration and by Republicans at the state level, have an effect on municipal elections, as well. They are not only a federal and state problem.

The Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law, a leader in the fight for more ethical and inclusive voting laws, as well as campaign finance laws, has placed a short and clear blog entry on Huffington Post, an increasingly valuable resource that goes beyond the usual strong opinions on national politics (although theres still a lot of that).

Voter ID laws depend on a belief in voter fraud in order to exclude poor and aged citizens from voting. Municipalities, like states, are full of these voters, and it is important for municipal officials to stand up for their right to vote against state legislators who want to take this right away.

Read the short essay and decide for yourself what obligations municipal officials might have with respect to Voter ID laws and practices in their community.