Rhode Island: Why Did Liberal African-Americans In Rhode Island Help Pass A Voter ID Law? | The New Republic

At a Senate hearing on voting rights last fall, Democrat Dick Durbin pointed out that voter ID laws were nothing more than a coordinated Republican effort to block poor and minority voters from the ballot. It’s a familiar charge, and Hans Von Spakovsky—Heritage Foundation fellow and leading voter ID proponent—squirmed briefly, before finding an out: “I don’t believe that the Democrats in Rhode Island who control…the state legislature would agree with that.” There’s a reason voter ID supporters have turned Rhode Island into a talking point: Of the eight states to pass photo ID laws in 2011, only Rhode Island had a fully Democratic legislature and a liberal governor. What’s more, black and Latino lawmakers were among the most vocal supporters of the July bill. Since then, Republicans have been happily invoking the law to rebut liberal accusations that voter ID laws are reviving Jim Crow-era tactics to disenfranchise minorities. If voter fraud is indeed taking place in Rhode Island, it would lend some credence to GOP talking points. But does the Rhode Island law actually represent good faith electoral reform?

Editorials: Angering their own party, Rhode Island Democrats approve voter ID | stateline.org

Should voters be required to show photo identification at the polls? For years, the question has amounted to a demarcation line between Republicans and Democrats.

The 2011 legislative year was shaping up to be no different. Republicans seized on their sweeping electoral victories last November by enacting photo ID laws in Alabama, Kansas, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Wisconsin, arguing that tougher rules are necessary to fight election fraud. Democratic governors in five other states — Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire and North Carolina — vetoed similar bills that their Republican legislatures passed, calling them an unfair burden on disadvantaged voters, chiefly minorities and senior citizens, who may not have driver’s licenses or other forms of government-issued ID. Behind the policy dispute are important political calculations, since Democrats claim that their supporters would be most of the people turned aside at the polls and that whole elections could hang in the balance.

Rhode Island: Voter ID critics express distaste in letter to Chafee | The Providence Journal

Fifteen minority, civil-rights, open government and social-service organizations have sent Governor Chafee a letter criticizing his decision to sign voter-ID legislation into law. The new law requires voters to present photo ID to vote, a law that the letter’s senders called “a significant and shameful step backward in the fight for equality at the voting booth.”

The letter also challenges Chafee’s claim that he spoke “with representatives of our state’s minority communities,” and “found their concerns about voter fraud and their support for this bill particularly compelling.”

“With respect, we would appreciate learning exactly who these representatives of minority communities you talked to are. None of our groups, representing a wide array of minority community constituencies in Rhode Island, has ever expressed support for this bill,” the letter states. “Further, to our knowledge, not one organization representing minority communities testified in support of this bill at either the House or Senate committee hearings.”

Rhode Island: Some liberals, Democrats stunned by passage of Rhode Island voter ID | The Providence Journal

When a voter ID bill passed in Rhode Island last week, longtime opponents were stunned. How could this happen in one of the country’s most Democratic and liberal states? Why did Democratic leaders and black legislators support it? And why did Governor Chafee sign it?

Some say black politicians were trying to protect themselves from Hispanics’ growing political power — two longtime black legislators were defeated by Hispanics in the 2010 elections. Some cite illegal immigration as a driving force. Some say voter ID is simply essential.

Whatever the reason, people are still seething a week later. That includes many within the minority community, who chide Chafee for saying he was compelled by concerns from the “minority community” about voter fraud.

Ohio: Hold On Ohio, Rhode Island’s Voter ID Bill Isn’t the Same | Rock the Vote Blog

Today’s Columbus Dispatch suggests that there are efforts to revive the strict photo ID bill in Ohio in a special legislation session next week. Some Republican leaders are trying to push fellow Republican Secretary of State Jon Husted, who has beenopposed to the photo ID legislation, and members of the Ohio Senate to accept the bill. Their rationale is that Rhode Island, which has a Democratic legislature and an independent Governor, passed legislation that implements new voter ID requirements at the polls.

… Let’s be clear: the newly enacted Rhode Island law is different from the Ohio proposal in many important ways.

Rhode Island: Chafee: Voter ID law will boost accuracy | The Providence Journal

Governor Chafee, in a statement Wednesday, said a new requirement mandating Rhode Islanders to show some form of identification before voting is a “reasonable request” to ensure the “accuracy and integrity” of state and local elections.

He said concerns about voter fraud raised by the state’s “minority communities” were “particularly compelling” as he weighed whether to allow the legislation, which passed the Democrat-controlled state General Assembly, to become law.

“One of our most cherished rights as Americans is the right to vote,” Chafee, an independent, said. “Throughout our nation’s history, we have fought to ensure that no citizen be denied that right. Similarly, we have also worked to maintain confidence in our elections by enacting appropriate safeguards to prevent voter intimidation and fraud.”

Rhode Island: New Law: Hobbits Cannot Vote in Rhode Island | Rock the Vote Blog

Rhode Island’s Governor Lincoln Chafee signed the latest photo ID legislation into law on Saturday, adding Rhode Island to the onslaught of restrictive voting policies.

Under the new law, poll workers will ask voters for identification beginning in 2012, but a number of non-photo documents such as a Social Security card, debit card, or birth certificate will suffice for identification. In 2014, however, all identification will need to include a photo. All college, Rhode Island and federally issued IDs will be accepted under the new law. The state will provide free photo ID starting in 2012.

While the Rhode Island Tea Party is praising the Democratic-led General Assembly and Republican-turned-independent Governor Chafee for requiring voters in future elections to show identification at the polls, opponents were taken aback by the bipartisan support of the measure. The novel push by Democrats in Rhode Island came in the wake of Democratic governors in New Hampshire, North Carolina, Missouri, Montana and Minnesota all vetoing similar legislation for fear of disenfranchising student, elderly and minority voters.

Rhode Island: Rhode Island embraces voter ID | stateline.org

The Rhode Island Tea Party is praising the Democratic-led General Assembly and Governor Lincoln Chafee, an independent, for requiring voters in future elections to show identification at the polls. While many states have passed similar legislation this year, Rhode Island is notable because it was Democrats — and not Republicans — who led the controversial effort.

… While the political lines over voter ID were drawn long ago, the decision by Rhode Island Democrats to press forward with their own legislation shows that the debate is not always a purely partisan one. The Providence Journal notes that Democrats teamed up with Republicans in Rhode Island’s House of Representatives before eventually sending the legislation to an independent governor for approval.

Rhode Island: Opponents surprised by Chafee’s signing of voter-ID bill | The Providence Journal

The fight over Rhode Island’s new voter identification law continued for three days after Governor Chafee quietly signed the legislation, with opponents saying they were led by the governor’s office to believe they still had a fighting chance.

A week earlier, Democratic North Carolina Gov. Bev Perdue vetoed a voter-ID bill passed by her state’s Republican-controlled legislature, saying it would “unnecessarily and unfairly disenfranchise many eligible and legitimate voters.”

But there was no such opposition from Chafee in Rhode Island, where Democrats overwhelmingly control the House and Senate. Democratic House Speaker Gordon D. Fox was one of the co-sponsors of the new voter-identification law, along with Democrat Jon Brien, of Woonsocket, and Republicans Joseph Trillo, of Warwick, and Doreen Costa, of North Kingstown. The Senate version was sponsored by Sen. Harold Metts, a Providence Democrat.

Rhode Island: Rhode Island Tea Party lauds Chafee for signing voter-ID bill | The Providence Journal

The Rhode Island Tea Party is cheering Governor Chafee for having signed legislation his office did not acknowledge he had signed, on Saturday, until mid-afternoon Tuesday.

In the absence of an earlier acknowledgment, the advocacy group Ocean State Action vehemently urged the governor to veto the so-called “voter identification” bill that, in future elections, will require voters to provide proof of their identity at the polls.

From Ocean State Action came this statement: “On the last day of the session, after an hour and a half of debate and against the strong objections of progressive legislators, the General Assembly passed a voter identification bill that will disenfranchise low-income voters, communities of color, the elderly and students across the state of Rhode Island.

Rhode Island: Rhode Island General Assembly sends voter ID bill to Governor | Boston.com

After lengthy and at times acrimonious debate Thursday, the Rhode Island House of Representatives sent to Gov. Lincoln Chafee a bill that would require voters to show identification at the polls starting next year.

A driver’s license, a passport, military ID or a voter identification card are among the acceptable forms of identification under the legislation. The bill would require the state to provide free voter identification cards. Until 2014, voters could also use a birth certificate, Social Security card or Medicare card.

Rhode Island: Rhode Island among the 10 states least friendly to voting | WPRI.com

It’s not easy to rock the vote in Rhode Island. That’s according to a new scorecard from Rock the Vote that ranks Rhode Island’s voting system 10th-lowest based on 12 metrics related to voter registration; casting a ballot; and young voter participation.

Rhode Island scored a 30%, better than neighboring Connecticut (20%) and Massachusetts (28%). The top state was Washington at 68%; the worst were South Carolina and Virginia, both at 18%.

I asked Secretary of State Ralph Mollis for his reaction, and he sent along this statement highlighting his office’s efforts on these fronts:

Rhode Island: Military Voting Bill from Secretary of State Mollis Set for Rhode Island House Vote Tuesday | RI.gov

This Tuesday, the state House of Representatives is scheduled to vote on legislation from Secretary of State A. Ralph Mollis that would change Rhode Island’s presidential primary calendar in order to ensure that military voters and others living overseas get their ballots faster.

The legislation is in response to the federal Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment (MOVE) Act, which requires states to mail ballots to overseas voters at least 45 days prior to an election.