House Bill Would Disenfranchise Millions of Elderly
SURVEY INDICATES HOUSE BILL COULD DENY VOTING RIGHTS TO MILLIONS OF U.S. CITIZENS: Low-Income, African American, and Rural Voters at Special Risk
By Robert Greenstein, Leighton Ku, and Stacy Dean
On September 20 the House passed a bill (H.R. 4844) that would, starting in 2010, effectively deny the vote to any U.S. citizen who cannot produce a passport or birth certificate (or proof of naturalization). Although the bill’s supporters present it as a measure intended to prevent non-citizens from voting, the bill’s main impact will be on U.S. citizens themselves.
The national survey, conducted in January 2006 by Opinion Research Corporation and sponsored by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, finds that approximately 11 million citizens currently lack the required documents. A substantial number could have difficulty obtaining or affording them. The survey also indicates that the bill would affect certain groups disproportionately — including people with low incomes, African Americans, the elderly, people without a high school diploma, rural residents, and residents of the South and Midwest. Substantial numbers of these and other citizens could potentially be disenfranchised by the bill.