SACRAMENTO\u00a0\u2014\u00a0What\u2019s so wrong about requiring every Californian to show a government ID before they\u2019re allowed to vote? That\u2019s what Proposition 39 backers ask. And it\u2019s a fair question.<\/p>\n
Here are some valid answers:<\/p>\n
It would make California\u2019s already notoriously slow vote count even more pokey.It would be an added hassle for citizens attempting to exercise their voting right.It would cost taxpayers a bundle, perhaps hundreds of millions of dollars each year.It\u2019s another solution by politicians to a problem that really doesn\u2019t exist.<\/p>\n
Practically everyone, regardless of political affiliation, must understand by now that there simply is no evidence of widespread \u2014 significant, meaningful \u2014 voter cheating in California or anywhere else in America. This despite conspiracy-theorists\u2019 fruitless searching and President Trump\u2019s lies about \u201crigged\u201d elections.<\/a> <\/p>\n It\u2019s my belief that the main reason Republicans placed Proposition 39 on the California ballot was to boost GOP voter turnout in the Nov. 3 election. And recent independent polling shows that the measure does appeal strongly to Republicans \u2014 but not Democrats, who are united in opposition.<\/p>\n The proposition appears to be headed for defeat,<\/a> largely because Democratic voters in this deep blue state equate it with the discredited president. Trump has turned into poison for Republican candidates in competitive races and any cause that reminds people of him.<\/p>\n You’re reading the L.A. Times Politics newsletter <\/p>\n Expert columnists cover the insights, legislation, players and politics you need to know. <\/p>\n By continuing, you agree to our Terms of Service<\/a>, which include arbitration and a class action waiver. You agree that we and our third-party vendors may collect and use your information, including through cookies, pixels and similar technologies, for the purposes set forth in our Privacy Policy<\/a> such as personalizing your experience and ads. <\/p>\n That\u2019s why the Proposition 39 campaign last week released a new major TV ad that essentially asks voters to ignore the president.<\/p>\n This is how conservative consultant Jon Fleischman summarized the ad\u2019s message to Democrats in his blog: \u201cYou can hate Trump and still back Voter ID.\u201d<\/p>\n Proposition 39 would mainly do two things:<\/a> <\/p>\n Require voters to show some government-issued identification each time they vote in person, such as a driver\u2019s license or passport. Don\u2019t have one? The state would issue a free ID card to any voter who asked.Californians who cast mail ballots \u2014 more than 80% of voters \u2014 would be required to write the last four digits of a government ID number on the return envelope. The number would be determined when initially registering to vote.<\/p>\n The measure also would impose some basically noncontroversial mandates that make sense separately. It would require election officials to maintain accurate voter registration files, weeding out people who have moved or died and verifying citizenship. But counties already do that pretty well.<\/p>\n The contrived bogeyman for election fraud scaremongers is the undocumented immigrant community. But these people, living on the edge and hiding from the government, aren\u2019t going to risk deportation by trying to vote in an election they couldn\u2019t care less about. And political candidates aren\u2019t going to waste their time and money on them. Their targets are the large numbers of apathetic legal voters who sit out elections.<\/p>\n Currently, Californians must provide identification when registering and swear under penalty of perjury \u2014 a felony \u2014 that they are U.S. citizens. And they must record their signatures when registering and scribble it on the back of the ballot envelope when voting by mail.<\/p>\n Requiring me to add a four-digit number on the back of my \u201cabsentee\u201d ballot envelope means I\u2019d have to register all over again to record the PIN. And then remember it every election. A pointless pain.<\/p>\n Assemblyman Carl DeMaio (R-San Diego), a conservative firebrand, instigated and authored Proposition 39. \u201cI do believe that voter fraud is a real problem. Absolutely,\u201d he told me.<\/p>\n But he said the proposition has two main goals: 1, to clean up voter files and make sure ballots are properly validated and counted. 2, to increase public confidence in the voting process. \u201cWe have a perception problem,\u201d he says. \u201cVoters have low trust\u201d in the election system.<\/p>\n Republicans mistrust a lot; Democrats not so much.<\/p>\n A California poll released last week by the UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies showed that 84% of Republican voters had a \u201cmajor concern\u201d about voter fraud. Only 21% of Democrats did.<\/p>\n Can anyone doubt who\u2019s driving the Republicans\u2019 anxiety? The bellicose president. \u201cMail-in voting means mail-in cheating,\u201d Trump has reiterated. \u201cIt\u2019s terrible what\u2019s going on.\u201d<\/p>\n This from the hypocrite who mails in his ballots.<\/p>\n Fortunately, Proposition 39\u2019s crafters left mail ballots pretty much alone, except for requiring a nuisance PIN on the ballot envelope.<\/p>\n That \u201cabsolutely\u201d will slow down vote counting, says Assemblywoman Gail Pellerin (D-Santa Cruz), who heads the Assembly Elections Committee and was the longtime chief elections official of Santa Cruz County. Under Proposition 39, officials not only would need to check voters\u2019 signatures against those on file, but also their PINs.<\/p>\n And voting in person would drag while people dug for an ID and an official checked it, Pellerin says. Some people are bound to be denied their voting right by mistake, she asserts.<\/p>\n Tony Quinn, formerly a GOP redistricting consultant and a longtime political analyst, points out that a disproportionately high portion of in-person voters are Republicans. Proposition 39 is \u201cimposing a burden on them,\u201d he says. \u201cI don\u2019t think the authors realize who\u2019s voting in person these days. They sense illegal aliens.\u201d<\/p>\n The UC institute poll showed Proposition 39 being supported by 39% of likely voters and opposed by 52%. It was backed by 92% of Republicans, but Democrats were 80% against. And they outnumber Republicans by nearly 2-to-1 in California.<\/p>\n The proposition also trailed in a poll by the Public Policy Institute of California: 43% yes, 55% no.<\/p>\n In the PPIC poll, Republicans said 39 was by far the most interesting proposition on the ballot.<\/p>\n Trump\u2019s influence? Among the paltry 27% of voters who approve of his job performance, 88% support Proposition 39. But of the 72% who disapprove of the president, 73% oppose the measure.<\/p>\n Trump is toxic.<\/p>\n Proposition 39 is more government regulation for no good reason.<\/p>\n What else you should be reading<\/p>\n The must-read: Tax the rich? California voters are divided, according to new poll<\/a> Until next week,
Law & Order: Ballot seizure by Riverside County sheriff was \u2018unlawful,\u2019 California Supreme Court rules<\/a>
The L.A. Times Special: High cost of living tops voter concerns, Becerra remains front-runner in governor\u2019s race, new poll shows<\/a> <\/p>\n
George Skelton<\/p>\n