Del. Mark Cole is worried about voter fraud in Virginia. Not that any evidence of widespread fraud has come to light in the commonwealth. But, well, it could be happening, Cole figures. So he’s going to double back on his effort this year to tighten up. Cole, a Republican from Spotsylvania County, has prefiled a bill for the 2013 General Assembly session, HB 1337, that would remove several forms of identification voters can present at the polls when they go to cast their ballots. He wants to strike current utility bills, bank statements, government checks or pay stubs that show a person’s address — all added this year to help win Justice Department approval when the Republican-dominated assembly passed, and Republican Gov. Bob McDonnell signed, legislation making it significantly harder for Virginians to vote without proper ID.
Those provisions surely helped the law pass muster, while new, more stringent photo ID laws failed in South Carolina and Texas — both, like Virginia, states covered by the Voting Rights Act that must satisfy federal authorities that election law changes are not aimed at disenfranchising minority voters.
Now Cole wants to take the provisions out. And, unfortunately, he is chairman of the House Privileges and Elections Committee, so Republicans will have to deal with the bill whether they want to or not.
Full Article: Voter fraud gets another spin – Roanoke.com.