Making Voting Easier

As this year’s strange and unpredictable presidential campaign winds its way to the summer conventions, the importance of voting has never been clearer. Around the country, however, this most fundamental of rights is under siege. The Supreme Court’s 2013 decision to gut the Voting Rights Act has allowed states like Texas and North Carolina to pass restrictive voting measures that disproportionately disenfranchise voters of color. For a country that has struggled to encourage adequate levels voter turnout and seen historical injustices weigh heavily on certain communities, these new laws are particularly counterproductive.

Fortunately, several states have been moving in the opposite direction. Oregon, for example, set a strong example for the rest of the country last year when it passed an automatic voter registration law. Under the Oregon model, anyone who applies for a driver's license or another form of state ID is automatically registered to vote, unless they choose to opt out. California gave the go-ahead to a similar system this past October. Thanks to the efforts of the New Democracy Coalition and state Representative Evandro C. Carvalho, Massachusetts state legislators have a chance to join their Oregonian and Californian counterparts in making voting easier. It is an opportunity they should take.

As the New Democracy Coalition’s founder, Kevin C. Peterson, told the Boston Globe, the adoption of such a measure would be a key statement in an era of voter suppression. Massachusetts should be a leader on this issue, and Representative Carvalho’s bill would expand on other states’ designs by creating a database of eligible voters from multiple sources, including public universities—an acknowledgement of the significant role that young people should play in the democratic process. Peterson has also argued convincingly that automatic voter registration will reduce the costs associated with paper registration forms and decrease fraud because of the existence of a centralized database.

This last point is especially crucial, as opponents of automatic registration have often cited fraud as a concern. Just as in the debate over voter ID laws, the fraud argument is a red herring. In reality, automatic voter registration has the potential to eliminate the small amount of fraud that does exist while also expanding access and lowering the initial psychological barrier to voter participation.

One of the sad side-effects of the turn towards voter suppression is that truly creative attempts to expand voting have faltered. Massachusetts could help reverse this trend by creating an automatic registration system, but government at all levels should think bigger. One of the greatest injustices of American elections is that most voting takes place on a Tuesday, which can force voters to choose between work and having a say in government. Making election day a national holiday—something supported by Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton—would ensure that all Americans can exercise their rights without economic consequences.