Democrats have already passed H.R. 1, also known as the For the People Act, in the House of Representatives; fortunately, the bill faces a much tougher road in the Senate. Among the bill’s many serious problems are a wide array that I would characterize as “mechanical,” in the sense that they dictate the nuts and bolts of how states would run elections. H.R. 1 attempts to dictate these elements in a way that is either impossible to put into effect or would gut the effective administration of elections. One example is how H.R. 1 dictates, through its Section 1621, that states must deal with signature verification – a cornerstone of election security, especially with the growth of mail-in balloting.
A bit of context is in order. Today, most states have a variety of security steps to protect their elections, such as requiring voters to show a picture I.D. or list their driver’s license number on mail-in ballots. However, in parts of H.R. 1 other than Section 1621, many of these current security practices are outlawed. You read that right – outlawed. For example, the 36 states that today require voter I.D. would be banned from imposing such requirements. It is apparently irrelevant to the drafters of H.R. 1 that every category of Americans supports voter I.D. to secure elections, including Democrats, blacks, and Hispanics.
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