If the right to vote is one of the most precious commodities that Americans of all race and gender have fought for over the years, then one would surmise that the fight to keep the voting process clean should not face hurdles.
But in Alabama, where politics, corruption, greed and partisanship often keep the state lagging behind its neighbors, that isn’t necessarily the case.
A committee in the Alabama House of Representatives approved a bill last week, by 8-3 decision, that would require Alabama voters to show valid photo identification at their local polling booths before they are allowed to cast a ballot.
After all, how else can we prove that folks marking ballots in the primaries and general election — elections that shape the future of this state and its people — are who they claim to be?
The inability to prove positive identification opens the door to voter fraud, which is a direct slap in the face and an insult to everyone who overcame adversity for the right to cast their ballots. Fraud makes the election process illegitimate. Is that what we’ve come to? Is that what we want?
Evidently, there are legislators in the House who oppose the bill, introduced by Rep. Gerald Allen of Cottondale. They claim forcing pollsters to show positive identification would make it more difficult for the elderly and low-income residents to vote. Perhaps it could be. There are low-income residents without driver’s licenses. But what’s more important here? Difficulty to provide positive identification or voter fraud?
We’ve had votes cast from the grave. We’ve had more votes cast in some counties than residents that live in these counties.
Let’s clean our elections.
At the same time, it’s time the dissenting lawmakers used their infinite wisdom to find legislation that could assist the elderly and low-income citizens to obtain legal identification so, they too, will have the same opportunity to vote as everyone else.
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