In Alaska it’s illegal to “exhibit” a picture of a marked ballot. Sharing a ballot selfie isn’t a criminal offense as in some states, but it is technically grounds for invalidating that vote. Now, Alaska may be joining 22 other states who have legalized ballot selfies as a form of political speech. On Oct. 27, 2016, former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin expressed her support for presidential candidate Donald Trump by posting a picture of her ballot on Facebook. The picture got 17,000 reactions, 560 shares and 616 comments. It also generated news articles questioning whether Palin had violated state law.
Rep. Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins, D-Sitka, says that ballot selfies should be recognized as a form of political speech in Alaska. (Photo by Skip Gray/Gavel Alaska)
State Rep. Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins, D-Sitka, thinks that it’s time for the so-called “ballot selfie” to be recognized as a form of political speech in Alaska.
“Ballots and voting are, in a certain sense, an expression of what your view of society should be, in terms of who you believe in electing in order to sort of effect that vision of society,” he said. “I think that’s an incredibly important form of speech and should be free and should be protected.”
Full Article: Lawmakers consider protecting ‘ballot selfies’ as part of free speech.