The Voter ID Amendment – Just Deceptive Politics

Voters in many states, particularly in my native Minnesota, are being bombarded with advertisements promoting or opposing constitutional amendments to require voter identification cards as a condition for being allowed to vote. The sole justification for this requirement is the prevention of voter fraud, and most ads cite various anecdotal evidence of some irregularity that has occurred and which might theoretically have been prevented had there been a voter ID law in place.

The thing that I find most perplexing about this debate is why it is so partisan--Republicans pushing the amendment and Democrats opposing it. If there actually is significant evidence of voter fraud, why doesn’t everyone, Republicans and Democrats alike, want to curtail it? Does anyone really believe that Democrats are actually in favor of voter fraud and only Republicans stand on the ethical high road?

Since I have not heard a good answer to this question from any Republican, I can only assume that the Republican Party has some ulterior motive having nothing really to do with voter fraud. They obviously think that the amendment would benefit Republicans politically, perhaps, as Democrats charge, by disenfranchising or discouraging voters who are likely to vote Democratic.

Anyway, fraud or no fraud, I am voting “No” because it seems obvious to me that the amendment is politically motivated, and I want no part of that kind of deceptive politics.