Ohio Republican Legislators Trying to Turn Back the Voter Rights Clock

A few months ago the Supreme Court effectively gutted the Voter Rights Act.  Republican run states immediately began introducing new voter restrictions--and not just in the South.

In 2011, the Republican dominated legislature in my home state of Ohio passed House Bill 194 which would have cut early voting days in half and banned early voting during the weekend before the election. The citizens of Ohio gathered enough signatures to force a referendum vote to overturn the bill.  Republicans, seeing the writing on the wall, voluntarily repealed part of the bill, but left in place the restriction against early voting during the weekend before the election. 

There was a lot of back and forth over some districts being permitted to allow voting during that weekend. No one was surprised to see that the districts chosen for the special weekend-before-the-election dispensation were overwhelmingly Republican.  The court stepped in and replaced weekend voting rights for all Ohioans and HB 194 disappeared from the state ballot. 

Skip ahead to August 2013:  On August 5,. State Representative John Becker (R) began seeking co-sponsors for a new bill that is essentially a copy of 2011's HB 194.  "This bill would reduce the length of time for absent voting from 35 days before Election Day to 17 days; limiting early voting to two weeks prior to the election concluding on the Friday before the election."

Mr. Becker is not alone.  Several other bills are in the seeking co-sponsorship stage, including bills that would introduce reduced early voting and the elimination of weekend early voting as separate pieces of legislation, another bill that would require a photo ID and still another bill to eliminate February and August special elections, (typically used for local tax levies).

what eye thynk:   The Republican plan appears to be to make each voter restriction a separate bill, thus making it nearly impossible for Ohioans to support a referendum vote on all of them.

Before I go on, I have to point out that in 2004, (when W. won the state) and Ohio voters complained of  long lines, state legislators voted to expand early voting to ease the problem.  In 2008, when early voting appeared to reduce polling place wait times, (and Barack Obama won the state), suddenly Republicans were moving the other way, introducing legislation to reduce voting hours.  In 2012, Mr. Obama won Ohio for the second time and Republicans are back with the same games.   One political writer called it "deja news."

But here is what's really wrong with states re-introducing voter restrictions struck down by the Justice Department before the 2012 election: while the Supreme Court's decision eliminated the section of the VRA that required states with previous voting rights violations to seek federal approval before instituting any voting changes, it did NOT change the essence of the law.  This is an important point and one  that is being missed by many of our Republican led states.

Think of it this way, if the Supreme Court said the I.R.S. could no longer audit federal tax returns that would not mean that you no longer had to pay federal taxes.  If your State Supreme Court said that local judges were no longer permitted to try defendants on murder charges, that would not make murder legal.  The Supreme Court's decision on the Voter Rights Act only blocks the "permission needed" section of the Act, it doesn't make voter suppression licit.

Put simply, the voting restrictions that were illegal last year, are still illegal today.  There just isn't any easy way to enforce them.  And that loophole is being taken advantage of by Republican run states at a pace that should surprise no one.

There is one hope in this mess.   The Justice Department recently decided that when "intentional voting discrimination" is found, they can step in to stop it.   This decision has resulted in a suit against the State of  Texas.  Texas' response is enlightening as well as unique in its honesty.  I'll be writing about that tomorrow. 

 C'mon back, y'all.