On Election Day, voters will decide whether to continue a decades-long right of Maine voters to register at the polls and in the few business days leading up to an election.
Question 1, a people’s veto, asks voters if they would like to “reject the section of Chapter 399 of the Public Laws of 2011 that requires new voters to register to vote at least two business days prior to an election.”
A yes vote would repeal this law, and would allow voters to continue to register on Election Day and the days leading up to elections.
We urge a yes vote on Question 1 to ensure Maine’s long-standing tradition of increasing access for voters and participation in elections.
Many supporters of the new law cited election fraud as a reason to keep voters from registering on the day of elections and the two business days before, but that claim has not been proven.
A study by the secretary of state did not turn up voter fraud in the state. After a two-month investigation into possible voter fraud by college students and non-citizens this summer, Maine Secretary of State Charlie Summers said evidence showed that students accused of committing fraud did not, and only one non-citizen voted in Maine.
In addition to a lack of evidence to support the new law, there is also a lack of support from those who are impacted most: Town clerks.
At hearings for the changes in May, Bangor City Clerk Patti Dubois said, “I am a little bit concerned about disenfranchising voters. I’d much prefer to continue with the process we have in place” on same-day voter registration.
During hearings, the Maine Town and City Clerks Association also said it would favor an amendment to remove the restrictions on voter registration, though members supported some other changes.
Eliminating same-day registration and voter registration in the few days before elections limits access to the democratic process and keeps people who may have otherwise cast a ballot from doing so. Many people have trouble getting to their city or town hall as it is ”“ whether it’s to register their car, pay taxes or get important documents ”“ and Election Day is the exception when people who work from 9-5 are given a pass to get to the polls and vote.
Another important fact is that people of all parities, and those who are unenrolled, all take advantage of same-day registration. The numbers have not shown that same-day voter registration is used disproportionately by one party or another, but unenrolled voters do use same-day registration at a higher rate than Democrats or Republicans and would likely be most affected by the removal of this service.
In 2008, in fact, close to 50,000 Mainers registered at the polls on Election Day, and 22,210 of those people were unenrolled, while 13,910 were Democrats and 9,561 were Republicans. Again in 2010, nearly 20,000 Maine residents registered to vote on Election Day with 7,759 unenrolled voters, 4,468 Democrats and 4,405 Republicans, according to figures provided by the Maine Secretary of State’s Office.
Mainers take the right to vote seriously, and disenfranchising voters is not a road we want to take.
Voter participation is important, and we hope Maine residents across the state will vote yes on Question 1 to preserve access to the polls and political process.
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Today’s editorial was written by City Editor Robyn Burnham, on behalf of the Journal Tribune editorial board. Questions? Comments? Contact Managing Editor Kristen Schulze Muszynski by calling 282-1535, Ext. 322, or via e-mail at kristenm@journaltribune.com.
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