Voter ID (Albuquerque: apartment, rent, credit card)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
The Supreme Court recently ruled that Indiana's voter ID law was Constitutional. Many other states are trying to jump on the bandwagon before the election. What are your thoughts, particularly in NM?
Last edited by trappedinNM; 05-02-2008 at 02:22 PM..
The Supreme Court recently ruled that Indiana's voter ID law was Constitutional. Many other states are trying to jump on the bandwagon before the election. What are your thoughts, particularly in NM?
It is very badly needed everywhere, not just here.
New Mexico has had a less than stellar history with elections. The delays and problems we've encountered in this state are embarrassing. It's a local theme to joke about the corruption at the state government level. A little too much of the 'old territory' was left in our politics. I'm for anything that increases accuracy and reduces corruption. It's hard enough to get people to vote. I'd like the votes that are cast to be accurate, and to count.
I feel that many who are against the ID are intimidated by the thought of having the contact with the government, or feel that they will be ineligible to apply for one reason or another. The reasons for ineligibility have always seemed clear and reasonable to me. If someone has a problem with them, I'm not sure I care to hear their vote.
I am absolutely for people required to show an I.D. Now the problem is that Mary Herrera will find some way to rig any election she can possible put any effort into.
Voter ID does:
*Slow down the voting process, increasing the hassle factor of voting.
*Cause additional expense to the voting process (more poll workers).
*Delay election results by increasing the number of provisional ballots by people who forgot their ID's.
Voter ID does not:
*Reduce fraud. If you want to rig an election, there are so much easier ways than somehow getting a list of unlikely voters, and driving you and three friends around to commit, say, 40 counts of voter fraud in a day. Unless you're in a town where games of chance to resolve ties are a regular occurrence, this is not going to have any impact on the election.
*Involve qualified document experts.
If I was going to all the trouble to impersonate you, including developing a phony ID, the poor poll worker is not going to have the slightest idea that I'm doing anything unusual.
*Require ID.
Provisional ballots for those who forget their ID don't require ID, and let's not forget the large number of absentee ballots that require naught more than a signature.
*Make the election process fair and transparent.
There's an outstanding documentary on HBO called "Hacking Democracy". In it, they feature the exact same kind of vote counting machine we have in every poll station in Albuquerque. In the documentary, they prove that the memory chip that election officials insert into the machine can be altered beforehand to skew the vote count in whichever direction the hacker wants. The machine passes the self tests, generates its startup receipt, and still gets skewed.
Folks, if you want to be an educated electorate, you need to stop chasing after the red herrings the politicians are throwing at you. Voter ID, as an issue, is a waste of time, and takes the attention off the real shenanigans.
You make some good points. I see ID's as a first-line against voter fraud.
In reality, locking your front door is pointless, as it only keeps out the most opportunistic burglar. The pro is going to get you no matter what. On the other hand, when was the last time you left the house without locking the front door? It is the first step is securing the election process.
Lets talk about cost - NM spent millions on plastic voter ID cards (many which were incorrect) when it could have just required voters to show a license or state-issed ID.
Poll workers - In most states they are volunteers. There is no cost.
I think we need to stop all provisional ballots. If you show up at the wrong place or without your license, too bad. If I show up at the stadium without my ticket, they don't issue me a "provisional" ticket.
Absentee voting should be resevered for either military serving abroad, or the true sick.
My point is that the more execptions we interject into the process the more opportunity there is for fraud. In NM, where the election races are truly close, we need some sense of integrity in the process, which is currently missing.
Peace.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
