In the midst of the legislative session kicking off, it seems the petition drive to place Voter ID on the 2011 ballot has been lost a bit in the shuffle.
Never fear, however, that the Republican Party is working hard to gather as many names as possible. If an email sent out yesterday by the Harrison County Republican Party chairman is any indication, they are a long way from making their goal.
Here’s an excerpt from the email:
Message from a Conservative trying to change corrupt elections:
I need your help on the Voter ID petition drive. This is a state-wide ballot initiative to require a photo ID when voting in order to prevent voter fraud.
Our goal for Jackson County is 5,547 signatures. So far we have collected 2,799. We need 2,748 more signatures in order to meet our goal. In order to achieve this, we need 70 people to collect one sheet (10 signatures) per week for all 4 weeks in January.
You’ll note the fear-mongering (and lying) that starts the email. The truth is that Republicans and Voter ID proponents have yet to point to ANY voter fraud that would be solved by Voter ID.
That said, having about half of Jackson County’s goal to go with a little over a month left seems a bit shocking. One would have thought Jackson County would have been one of the first counties the GOP would have signed up.
Could it be that people down there are more concerned about real issues instead of wedge issues? That’s a thought.
To be honest, I would have thought they were closer to their goal. I’ve been working under the assumption that the state GOP would not fail to get Voter ID on the ballot.
We’ll find out Feb. 14.
Edited by author to change name of county from Harrison to Jackson.
Sir, have you ever thought about getting the ‘facts’ and ‘truth of the matter’ prior to commenting and giving your opinion on any matter? In the very near future you are going to be ’shocked’ that you were so off base. Pat Bruce
Not sure what you are talking about. Perhaps the goal is just that: a goal. Perhaps the goal for Jackson County (which I mistakenly called Harrison earlier) is not a reflection on how many names are NEEDED.
As I said, I fully expect the number of signatures to be there. Have all along.
But, if the goal does have some link to the actual number needed, then I’d be “shocked” that they were so far behind.
Of course, it’s a great way to raise money, gather email addresses and the such, whether it makes it on the ballot or not. That’s why it was a no-brainer for the GOP to back the initiative even after their own legislators killed a VOTER ID BILL IN THE LEGISLATURE LAST YEAR!
Why doesn’t the democratic party get on board with voter id ? What is wrong with asking someone to show their identification when they vote ?
I am a black Democrat, and I signed the petition. I agree with George, I think some Democrats are hanging on to the past try to make a racial issue out of voter ID. I’m all about fair elections and I think this is a step in the right direction. Why does this have to be Republican- Democrat?
One reason is because voting is a right guaranteed by our Constitution, and it is a right not limited by identification or passing tests. It requires that identity and address is proven at the time of registering. Once registered, you get to vote.
But past that, to believe that Voter ID will solve any of the current issues that we see in the electoral system is misguided. I’ll restate what was stated in the blog post:
If that weren’t the truth, they would be heaping example after example of voter fraud that could be remedied by Voter ID. They haven’t.
Check with Scott Walker, who ran for mayor of Ocean Springs and see if he would have won his race if voter ID had been in place !!