Page 2 - ARUBA TODAY

A2 UP FRONT
Monday 3 June 2019

Partisan control determines how states act on voting rights

Continued from Front for Justice at New York Uni- 2022. While bills increasing
versity’s School of Law. voter access this year far
New York is among a small In New Mexico, Democrats outnumbered those seek-
number of states where not only expanded their ing to impose restrictions,
Democrats made big gains majority in the state House many of the expansion bills
in last year’s election and but also claimed the gov- were put forward by Dem-
have used that power to ernor’s mansion after eight ocratic lawmakers in states
pass laws to make it eas- years of GOP control. By led by Republicans. That
ier to register and to vote. March, Gov. Michelle Lujan means they are unlikely
They have introduced early Grisham had signed a law pass. In the 2018 elections,
voting, all-mail voting or to allow people to register Democrats nearly doubled
automatic registration. and vote on the same day to 14 the number of states
A few Republican-led beginning in 2021. Previ- in which they control the
states — some of which ously, registration ended 28 governor’s office and both
saw high turnout for Demo- days before an election. legislative chambers, but
cratic candidates — are Hawaii lawmakers ap- Republicans remain in
going in the opposite di- proved legislation replac- charge in more states — 22.
rection, advancing bills to ing the in-person voting sys- While some voting reforms In this Thursday, Jan. 31, 2019, file photo, U.S. Rep. Ben Ray Lujan,
tighten voter registration tem with one made up en- such as automatic registra- of New Mexico, at podium, addresses the state Legislature in
and early voting. tirely of mailed ballots. If the tion have drawn bipartisan Santa Fe, N.M.
“Some of this seems like measure is signed into law, support, Republicans gen- Associated Press
a fairly direct response to the state will join Colorado, erally have opposed same- In Connecticut, Republi- “What politicians should be
things that happened in Oregon and Washington day registration, mail-only cans recently thwarted a doing is making sure that
the midterms,” said Max with mail-only voting. Dela- voting and other changes, push by Democrats to do local election officials have
Feldman, who tracks voting ware approved in-person, saying they increase the as New York did and add the adequate resources to
laws at the Brennan Center early voting beginning in potential for fraud. in-person, early voting. do their jobs,” ACLU attor-
Democrats have a legisla- ney Sophia Lakin said in an-
tive majority there, but a nouncing a federal lawsuit
constitutional amendment challenging the new law.
is required to make the “Silencing civic groups’
change, and they fell short voices is not the solution.”
of garnering the votes nec- In Texas, where Democrats
essary to put the issue on picked up two congressio-
the ballot. nal seats last year, lawmak-
Republicans had expressed ers have been considering
concern that early voters a bill that would make it a
might come to regret their felony rather than a misde-
selections if a race’s dy- meanor to knowingly put
namics shifted after they false information on a voter
had turned in their ballot. registration form. It would
GOP lawmakers in some also increase scrutiny of
states also have targeted those who provide trans-
groups that register voters. portation for voters head-
They say such groups can ed to the polls.
create a burden for local Voter-suppression claims
election officials if they turn also have been made
in large numbers of forms against Republicans in Flor-
that are incomplete or ida, over a constitutional
contain false information. amendment voters ap-
In Tennessee, Republican proved last year that would
Gov. Bill Lee signed a law make it easier for convict-
that allows for fines against ed felons to regain the right
groups turning in 100 or to vote.
more incomplete registra- Republican lawmakers, in
tion forms in a year. drafting legislation to im-
“This bill was presented plement the amendment,
because of actual circum- said its language about
stances that were meant felons having to complete
to confuse the integrity, or “all terms of their sentence
to create a lack of integ- including parole or proba-
rity, in the voting process,” tion” also meant paying all
Lee said. court fees, fines and restitu-
Critics say Tennessee’s Re- tion before being eligible
publicans feel threatened to vote. “This measure is
by an increase in voter par- nothing but a poll tax that
ticipation last year. In 2018, would effectively disen-
turnout in the state was 51 franchise those who are
percent higher than in the unable to pay,” Rep. Mar-
previous midterm election. cia L. Fudge, an Ohio Dem-
About 259,500 new voters ocrat, said during a recent
registered in the six months congressional hearing in
before Election Day. Florida.q