Sunday, November 2, 2008

Gianaris and Gioia push for same-day voter registration

Let voters register on Election Day, say lawmakers
By Kathleen Lucadamo
Daily News Staff Writer

Two lawmakers joined with good government groups Saturday to call for a change in state law that would allow voters to register on Election Day.

"At a time when voter turnout is expected to reach record levels, we must find ways to open the democratic process so that everyone who qualifies can participate," said Assemblyman Michael Gianaris (D-Queens).

Gianaris, who stood with City Councilman Eric Gioia (D-Queens) Saturday at City Hall to lobby for the move, has a bill pending in Albany that would require same-day registration.

Nine states with same-day registration - including Wyoming, Minnesota and Maine - average 10% higher voter turnout than states that don't, the pols said.

Nearly 38% of registered voters in New York turned out for the 2006 elections, compared with an average of 54% in the states with same-day registration, said Gioia.


This will make voter registration fraud much easier. No wonder the tweeders are for it.

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

Good God, isn't there anyone out there with the balls to speak out on this madness?

Anonymous said...

Do any of these "Voter Fraud" promoters ever even attempt to justify - with realistic evidence - that taking sensible time to verify a registrant's identity and residence is some kind of burden?

Do we really need people to vote who never heard there is an election until the day of to suddenly wish to perform their civic duty?

Do those with "a sudden urge" to vote have a sudden claim on our belief that they are acting honestly?

Do the politicians who see no need to verify the legitimacy of the "sudden urgers" desire to vote really believe that we should not be suspicious of the politicians' motives and honesty?

We can't even enter a public building to do ordinary public business without being searched, scanned, and showing photo-ID.

But, the politicians want the most important public business to be performed without proper verification?

Anonymous said...

We survived the British, the Germans, the Italians, the Soviets etc.
We will not survive the democrats.

Anonymous said...

tweeding tweeding tweeding tweeding tweeding tweeding tweeding tweeding tweeding tweeding tweeding tweeding tweeding tweeding tweeding tweeding tweeding tweeding tweeding tweeding tweeding tweeding tweeding tweeding

Anonymous said...

"Good God, isn't there anyone out there with the balls to speak out on this madness?"

Yes, they're called Republicans, but no one is listening.

Anonymous said...

Actually, it will make voting much easier. Actual voting fraud (as opposed to voting registration fraud) is very rare. Making voting as accessible as possible is a key to healthy democracy, something you claim to care about on this site.

Unknown said...

Copy & Paste what taxpayer said right here! Everyone else that agrees needs to call your city council office and tell them how you feel about it, fax or send a letter to them.

Anonymous said...

"Making voting as accessible as possible is a key to healthy democracy, something you claim to care about on this site."

Ballot boxes are already totally accessible. Well, anyway, for those realistic enough to not demand a ballot box in their bed, bath and beyond.

Proof of identity and residence is simple to obtain and produce. Next time you try to open a bank account, or get a credit card, or get a mortgage, or cash a check at the supermarket, or do anything that's dear to your heart, you will have to produce proof of identity and residence. And, you'll find the process is quick, simple, and inexpensive.

Why is that such an imposition when voting?

Your bank, supermarket, auto dealer, real estate agency are some distance from many people's home, but, we all manage to deal with the distance and the business hours and the red tape.

Why is there any difference for voting?

We now fully understand what the consequences of mortgage fraud are.

Why is there any difference for voter fraud?

Don't think like bumper stickers. Don't let the politicians and fraudsters control your thinking.

Think things all the way through. Think things through for yourself.

What a difference an independent, informed thought is!

Anonymous said...

"Making voting as accessible as possible is a key to healthy democracy"

Thats just a hollow platitude. To think that responsible citizens have to make accomodation for tards that show up on election day without ID is absurd.

Honestly, people like that are stupid and lazy, and any vote they cast is an unenlightened one.

Anonymous said...

"Why is there any difference for voting?"

Sounds like you guys were asleep in Civics classes.

Anonymous said...

"Actual voting fraud (as opposed to voting registration fraud) is very rare".

Are you kidding! How stupid do you think we are? You can walk into any voting location, vote and fill out some form that says you forgot to register in time or some other excuse. At the end of the day your vote is counted with everyone else. Only if the election is close does anyone bother to check to see if these voters had the right to vote in the first place. The elections are never close. Get it. Also many times when they count the votes at the end of the night they add votes to the tally. Both parties are supposed to verify the counts at every machine at the end of the night. But I can assure you that by the end of the night many of those who are supposed to be watching are not they just want to go home. Usually the democrats far outnumber the republicans as pole observers. In some locations there will be no republicans at all. Again, these votes are only verified if the election is close. These are only two ways to commit fraud; I am sure there are many others that I am not aware of.

Anonymous said...

Where have these people been for the past two years while the rest of us have been tortured with constant debates and news about the presidential election. I suggest they continue living under their respective rocks.

Anonymous said...

What asinine comments from most of you. Many people are KILLING themselves struggling to survive. They're working long hours and on top of the other bizzilion things they have to do they somehow forget to register to vote til the last minute or past the deadline. Is that so ridiculous? I am a single mom who has been killing myself...especially the last few months where I have moved twice (once out of state) and had to find new employment, while raising my son all on my own...I understand very clearly how this happens and why same day voter registration should be allowed. Sheesh.

Anonymous said...

It literally takes 5 minutes to fill out a voter registration card. This year's race has been in the news for months. No excuse for not registering in time for BOE to determine if you are eligible.

Anonymous said...

The trick to registration and/or voting fraud is to have very large numbers of people overwhelm the system with demands to register or vote, as close to the deadline as possible.

With vast, overwhelming demands with no time to verify, the entire verification process will collapse.

It is not an imposition to process any request (to register or vote) to determine, identity, residency, age, citizenship and English language ability.

We all wait for things we want. Credit cards, mortgage, entry to a government building, a passport, a check to clear, etc., all require time to process to avoid fraud.

Our vote is certainly far more precious than any of those, and the serious among us really don't want someone registering or voting on our identity.

And, really; so what if the ballot access time doesn't suit you. So what if you have to walk a few blocks, or stand in line, or sign in or show proof of identity. Jimmy crack corn and I don't care.

Instead of all this "access" nonsense, we should be throwing our own tantrum to demand that the verification process is Fort Knox foolproof. Computers can store, retrieve and process enormous quantities of data in speeds that are stunning. Our government agencies spend zillions on computers to uselessly invade our privacy and annoy us. Since the politicians thrive on fraud and corruption, they blather on about how it would be impossible to process all voting data in a timely manner.

The blather is a self-interested lie.

Without any invasion of the secrecy of our ballot choices, it is completely possible to instantly verify the eligibility of every person who registers to or goes to vote.

On any single day, banks process probably more than a billion transactions at the teller, at the ATM, and through check processing.

And, they manage to do this without revealing identities, account or PIN numbers. They conclude each day or processing hundreds of millions of accounts without dropping a dime.

Is the government too stupid, or too lazy to process simpler data? Or, too corrupt?

Anonymous said...

Registering on the day of an Election puts an enormous strain on the people who are working at the polls. It also opens up a fraudulent can of worms. When people are pressed for time, they might allow a person to register who is not entitled to that right. There should be a cut-off date for registration. That's it. We also have registration at motor vehicle offices. There is no excuse to register to vote on Election Day. I know people are busy, but if you care enough about our country, you should check the cut-off to register. Only citizens are allowed to vote.