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This week marks the 50th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act. This week also marks a watershed ruling by a federal appeals court striking down the controversial Texas voter ID law as violating that landmark civil rights act.
A new study conducted by the University of Houston Hobby Center for Public Policy and Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Policy examines the impact of the contested Texas law in U.S. Congressional District 23 (CD-23).
The study suggests that the most significant impact of the Texas voter photo ID law on voter participation in one particular district was to discourage turnout among registered voters who mistakenly believed they did not possess the correct photo identification.
"One of the most striking findings of this study is that potential voters who did not vote actually did possess one of the valid forms of photo ID," said Jim Granato, professor and director of the Hobby Center for Public Policy. "An important issue to be explored is not just the voter photo ID law itself, but the actual education and outreach efforts to ensure all eligible voters understand what form of photo ID may be used to vote."
Spanning a large geographic area in west and south Texas, CD-23 is a Latino majority district with Hispanics accounting for 65.8 percent of the district's voting-age population and 58.5 percent of its registered voters. It is also widely considered to be the only one of the state's 36 U.S. House districts that is competitive for both Democratic and Republican Party candidates. A telephone survey of 400 registered voters who did not vote in CD-23's November 2014 election was conducted in English and Spanish by the Hobby Center for Public Policy's Survey Research Institute.
The 5.8 percent of the CD-23 non-voters stated the principle reason they did not vote was because they did not possess any of the seven forms of photo identification required by the state. More than twice that many (12.8 percent) agreed their lack of any one of the seven photo IDs was a reason they did not vote. However, when further queried about the different forms of photo identification in their possession, the survey revealed that a much lower proportion (2.7 percent), in fact, lacked one of the seven needed to vote in person.
The study also found Latino non-voters were significantly more likely than Anglo non-voters to strongly agree or agree that a lack of photo ID was a reason they did not cast a ballot in the Nov. 4 contest.
The findings suggest that the presence of the law and its potential impact on the outcome of that election kept far more supporters of Pete Gallego, D-Alpine, the then-freshman incumbent representative, away from the polls than those who supported the district's ultimate winner of the election, Will Hurd, R-San Antonio.
"Our expectation is to build on this initial case study by analyzing additional Texas congressional districts and investigating other states' voter ID laws," Granato said. "Broadening the study to examine the extent to which voter fraud exists is another interesting avenue to explore."
(Score: 2) by dry on Sunday August 09 2015, @10:23PM
I'm in Canada, need my drivers license in my possession when driving. Don't need ID to bank, at least where I bank. Need ID for purchasing alcohol and tobacco if you appear young (signs say under 30). In theory don't have to show ID to the police (in practice, if you look undesirable, you may be harassed for no ID). Never needed ID besides my voter registration card and anything with my name on it.
This election the Conservatives passed the Orwellian "Fair Voting Act" where you need 2 pieces of ID, one of which needs your picture and address on it. I'm fine due to my driving license. My wife doesn't drive, her federally issued picture ID isn't good enough for voting, along with her Provincially issued ID as none has her address. There are quite a few people, especially natives, who don't have a numbered address. None can vote. Students who go to University also have a lot of problems due to not having current address on ID.
Draconian ID laws are nuts.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Sunday August 09 2015, @10:43PM
"federally issued picture ID isn't good enough"
That being the case, the federal government needs to step in, and MAKE a federal photo ID "good enough". That might mean that the federal government put addresses on the cards, or it might mean that the physical address is not required on a photo ID.
In view of the fact that native Americans don't use numbered addresses, it would seem more reasonable not to require a physical address on the card. Or, that the cards use some other form of address. How does a native's address look on paper? How does he get mail? Whatever that form of address is, should be "good enough".
Students? Are the students residents of the town in which the university is located? Or, are they residents of the town where the parents who support them live? That gets tricky. I have a son who is still in college, and he has bent and twisted residency laws to his advantage for the past five years. I THINK that he has finally officially become a resident of Commerce, Texas now, but I'm not certain. Unless, and until, he actually becomes a resident, he has no right to vote in Commerce, or in Texas. I know that he can make himself a legal resident, if he just completes the paperwork, and gets his voter registration. But, then, of course, he will be INeligible to vote here, in his home town, county, and state. And, that is as it should be.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday August 09 2015, @11:20PM
A conservative pushing for Big Government™? Wow. First you support gun-control laws, now this? Are you really a conservative?
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Monday August 10 2015, @05:48PM
*sigh*
Some of you can only see black and white, left and right, good and bad. There's an entire spectrum of colors between black and white.
The federal government already requires all of us to have a damned federal ID. As mentioned by Tibman, you have a social security card. It would take little effort to make that card satisfy all the requirements of a voter's registration card. That's not "big government" - it's STREAMLINING government.
Am I really a conservative? You need to try to keep up. I am neither democrat, nor republican, neither liberal nor conservative. I am an independent, and I've been registered as such for 41 years now. That isn't about to change. I tend to identify with a lot of the Libertarian party's position, but I'm not a Libertarian either.
You can't hammer me into one of your square holes, or a round hole either. I'm DIFFERENT. I've refused to be brainwashed by any party, which leaves me inde-fucking-pendent. Try to wrap your little mind around all of that, alright? Now, run along, and try to have a nice day.
(Score: 2) by tibman on Monday August 10 2015, @04:12PM
They could make the flimsy paper social security card into a proper "card" with a picture. No address though, that really shouldn't be required at the national level.
SN won't survive on lurkers alone. Write comments.
(Score: 2) by dry on Wednesday August 19 2015, @05:41AM
The Federal Government has purposely made their ID (Indian Status Card) not good enough and they aren't going to change it, preaching small government.
I've lived in places where we didn't have numbered addresses and used a post box for mail. It is actually quite common in a large country like Canada, and no, they are not going to allow postal boxes to prove residency.
As for students, it can be a grey area, but here you only have to live in a riding for 6 months to have enough residency to vote and considering the length of the school year, most students are eligible to vote where they attend university. Meanwhile things like driving licences and medical coverage (Provincial) have longer residency requirements, so if the student is planning on returning home, it is simpler to not change drivers license and medical card. The voter registration is kept track off nationally (for federal elections) so there is little chance of registering twice and voting twice. Our system has worked for a long time and these changes are just a way to influence voter turnout.