Voting restrictions

[MattW1701]

Jurisdiction

US Federal Law

I've followed the discussion about voting restrictions in (mostly Republican controlled) states for a few years now (I'm not a lawyer) and watching the NYT's latest Retro Report about the 2000 Supreme Court decision "Bush v. Gore" made me realise that the Supreme Court may have (unwittingly) provided a possible line of attack against voter ID laws.

Bush v. Gore was decided on the basis that there was an Equal Protection Clause violation in using different standards of counting in different counties (the 14th amendment, if I'm not mistaken). Why couldn't one argue that the fact that a person in one state doesn't need ID to vote (or can vote in advance) and another one does (or can't) violates the Equal Protection Clause?

If the fact that you are living in, say, Texas is the only reason that you cannot vote in a Presidential Election, how is that not at least a good start for an argument along those lines? If "Bush v. Gore" set the precedent of applying the 14th amendment to decide how elections must be held unifromly in various counties, why can't we apply the same principle to the US as a whole?

 

[army judge]

All I can say is that I live in Texas.
I've served in the military, retiring after 30 years.
I've never been denied the right to vote.
I know of no one who's ever been denied the right to vote, Elena few illegal aliens who SADLY have voted and bragged about it.
I worry more about who's voting, than who's not being allowed to vote.

People eagerly show valid picture ID (and agree to be groped) to board an airplane, enter a federal courthouse, so why is that a problem when it comes to voting?
Bush v. Gore has absolutely nothing to do with anyone being denied their right to vote.

However, you're free, as is any adult; to litigate matters that vex, annoy, irritate, or flummox you.

Have at it, mate.

 

[MattW1701]

I very well know that this is a very partisan topic, but it was not my question whether any specific individual had been denied the right to vote or not. My question - very specifically - was whether different election rules in different states violate the 14th Amendment's Equal Protection Clause; or, more precisely, whether such an argument makes any legal sense.

Whether voter ID makes sense or not is not the issue here; the issue is different rules in different states and whether if one takes "Bush v. Gore" into account, this question could be framed in the context mentioned above.

I could've gotten an answer like yours (basically "I'm Republican and don't care for that point of view, but feel free to sue and find out") on almost any forum on the web. I thought this community was a chance to ask legal experts, but appearantly, flippant replies are all I can expect.

I'll take my question elsewhere. Sorry to bother you.

 

[army judge]

Our Constitution, Article VI, clause 3 - "no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States".

The Constitution leaves the determination of voters' qualifications to be decided by the individual states.

Due to some state and local discriminatory and irregular practices, over time, a federal role in elections has increased, through various amendments to the Constitution and other enacted legislation (Voting Rights Act of 1965).


The voting rights issue in the United States has been argued throughout United States history. Eligibility for voting in the United States has been established BOTH in the US Constitution and its amendments, and by state law.

Absent a specific federal law or constitutional provision, each state is allowed wide and considerable discretion to establish qualifications for suffrage and all candidacy requirements within its own respective jurisdiction; PLUS, states and lower level jurisdictions establish election systems, such as at-large or single member district elections for municipalities, county councils, township boards, community college trustees, or school board trustees within the various governmental entities.