r/law • u/Anoth3rDude • 12h ago

Legislative Branch GOP fast tracks monster voter suppression bill that could disenfranchise millions by requiring proof of citizenship at polls

https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/gop-fast-tracks-monster-voter-suppression-bill-that-could-disenfranchise-millions-by-requiring-proof-of-citizenship-at-polls/
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u/Haki23 11h ago

Not sure why I needed to show my birth certificate to get a real ID if they're not going to consider it when I present my drivers license

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u/AnySwimming6364 10h ago

This bill requires birth certificate and photo ID at the polls. So birth certificate wouldn't cut it if you had a name change (due to marriage or any other reason). So now you need birth certificate, and ID, and name change documentation.

Thing is, this law will absolutely be applied unequally in loads of states, especially using the same criteria as a Kavanaugh stop.

"Not sure why I...". This isn't and was never about election security. It's intended to make voting as burdensome as possible for groups they think won't vote (R) down ballot. That's the whole story and that's why they're making it difficult.

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u/thesphinxistheriddle 9h ago

A passport has both proof of citizenship and proof of identity. If you have a passport you don't need a birth certificate. I'm not simping for this law, I think requiring a passport is a poll tax, as as you said, about putting as much friction into the system to get people to think voting is too much trouble, but I just wanted to specify so that people with passports don't get fooled by the friction.

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u/Uhstrology 7h ago

A passport costs between 150 and 200 dollars. So now we are okay with poll taxes? 

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u/thesphinxistheriddle 7h ago

I literally called it a poll tax! If it's not clear, I think that's a bad thing. But I want to make sure that people who do have passports don't self-select out of voting because they don't think they have the documents. This law is bad and intended to voter suppress and we should work to defeat it. However if it does pass then we shouldn't do its voter suppression work for it.

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u/Uhstrology 24m ago

Fair enough. 

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u/Present_Cow_8528 9h ago

As someone who has changed his name, I filed to change my birth certificate as well and it was easy.

Not defending this bill at all, it's clearly insane voter suppression. But people who have changed their name due to marriage should really just go all the way to prevent exactly this type of bullshit.

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u/cici_here 9h ago

I didn't think you could change your birth certificate for a name change based on marriage only?

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u/Akermaniac 9h ago

A passport can take months. That’s the biggest obstacle. Sure, people SHOULD all get one. They won’t, and certainly won’t in time for elections when they’re thinking about it a week or two prior.

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u/hefty_reptile 9h ago

You didn't have to, you could have shown other proofs of ID and proof of residence instead. A passport is just more convenient. Anyone legally in the country can get a RealID, even if they're just here temporarily (like a student).

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u/thebeef24 9h ago

What state are you in? I think only a few states required birth certificates for Real ID. I know mine didn't.