In a democracy, you're supposed to win elections by winning the hearts and minds of voters. Evidently, Republicans have decided there's a better way: prevent those who disagree with you from voting at all.

Tomorrow, Republicans in the House of Representatives are planning to ram through a bill that will disenfranchise some of the most vulnerable Americans, under the guise of preventing voter fraud. On its face, the bill sounds reasonable: it would require voters in federal elections to show a state or federal government-issued photo ID. In reality, there's no evidence that the kind of fraud this bill would prevent even exists.

The only predictable effect is that voting would become impractical and costly for millions of Americans who don't have such an ID--namely the elderly and the poor, groups that reliably vote Democratic. Faced with new obstacles, many of them will most likely choose not to vote.

Unless we speak out now, this bill is likely to pass. Call on your representative to vote NO on HR 4844 by clicking the link below, and please ask your friends and family to do the same.

http://www.colorofchange.org/suppression/

With this bill (H.R. 4844), Republican legislators are trying to accomplish at the federal level what they have already been trying to do at the state level. Photo ID laws have passed in Georgia, Ohio, Indiana, Missouri, and Arizona, but injunctions from judges, vetoes from Democratic governors, and lawsuits have slowed down the process.¹ In fact, just last week, a Missouri judge struck down that state's voter ID law as unconstitutional.²

Supporters of voter ID laws insist that they are needed to prevent ineligible citizens and illegal immigrants from voting. But any election official will tell you that these kinds of incidents occur very rarely, if at all.

If these politicians really wanted to restore voter confidence in the election process, they'd be working to create laws that encourage more people to vote and ensure that each vote is counted. Democracy works best when the maximum number of people can participate. Bills like the one being pushed by House Republicans are designed to achieve the exact opposite result.
 
After the election debacles of 2000 and 2004, our democracy can't afford another blow. Voting, and participating in the political process, is the fundamental promise of a great democracy. To create laws that deny millions of Americans that promise is anti-democratic and un-American.

Please join us in telling your representative to vote against H.R. 4844.

http://www.colorofchange.org/suppression/

Thank You and Peace,

-- James, Van, Clarissa, Gabriel, and the rest of the ColorOfChange.org team
   September 19th, 2006

References:

1. "Parties Battle Over New Voter ID laws," L.A. Times, September 12, 2006
http://www.colorofchange.org/ref/suppression_1.html

2. "Judge strikes down Missouri voter ID law," Kansas City Star, September 12, 2006
http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/politics/15519955.htm

3. "The GOP wants to see your ID," Salon.com, September 15, 2006
http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2006/09/15/voterid/