Voter Suppression or Voter Fraud?

Voter suppression refers to the strategy used by politicians to influence election outcomes by preventing specific people and groups from voting. Voter fraud, on the other hand, means the legal interference with the due process of an election either through increasing the number of votes in favor of a specific candidate or depressing the vote share of rival candidates or both. In the Politics & Policy section of The National Review Website, readers tend to have a biased understanding about the democrat and republican beliefs. For instance, the readers are in support of most if not all claims that suggest voter suppression is not a serious matter and voter fraud is the real political issue in the United States. Republicans argue that voter suppression is necessary, as it helps mitigate voter fraud. However, Democrats opine that the restrictions are attempts to prevent people from exercising their civic rights. The audience’s right-biased viewpoint limits them from having a justifiable opinion and thus the issue is relevant. This paper will discuss voter suppression as the existing issue featured in the 2020 elections. Read more

Voter suppression is a real issue and featured prominently in the 2020 elections. For instance, a 70-second video shared by an Atlanta Journal Constitution reporter stirred debates online particularly from Democrats concerning alleged voter suppression (Hoonhout, para 2). In other words, the Democrats used the long lines as a PR stunt to accuse the Republicans of voter suppression. Senator Ron Wyden took to his tweeter account saying, “Republicans have spent decades making it harder for Americans to vote, and we’re watching the results play out in real time” (Hoonhout, para 4). It was later reported that Wyden was a proponent of voter suppression as he joined others in paying voters $100 to wait in the line for at least 90 minutes (Hoonhout, para 4). Waiting long to vote is a common practice, especially among the marginalized communities. This is considered a real threat to the democracy of communities and the country at large. Therefore, voter suppression is a real issue and should not be ignored.

The crushing of registration sites in Florida ahead of deadline is another form of voter suppression. Politics & Policy section of The National Review reports that the crushing of the registration website on Monday hours before the midnight deadline to voter registration was deliberate and was meant to prevent some voters from exercising their democratic right. Democrat officials read the signs and accused their Republican counterparts of voter suppression. Additionally, the voters in Florida reported getting error messages and slow responses when they attempted to register as voters (Mcardle para 2). Voters in Florida express their concerns saying that voter suppression was becoming a common phenomenon as the registration website also experienced some hitches hours to the voter registration deadline in 2018 (Mcardle para 7). A tweet from Nikki Fried to DeSantis read in part, “not planning for a voter registration surge is voter suppression. Not ensuring that everyone who wants to register can do so is voter suppression” (Mcardle para 8).

The October 1, 2020 proclamation by Governor Abbott of Texas was also seen as a form of voter suppression. In the proclamation, Abbott restricted in-person drop off location for mail box to a single voting clerk’s office in each county. His decision to limit the options of voters featured prominently as a major issue in the 2020 election campaigns (Withers para 2). This is because voters always have three methods of exercising their democratic right including carrier, mail, and in-person (Withers para 6). The move by the governor was termed as a form of voter suppression because of the many requirements of in-person drop off voting method. In other words, the voters using this method need to show proof of identification as a proof that the ballot holder is the person who voted the ballot. Voter Suppression or Voter Fraud?

Refutations

There is no proof that the 70-second video shared by an Atlanta Journal Constitution reporter was a form of voter suppression. In other words, the video that stirred debate online is not enough evidence that Republicans engaged in voter suppression. The long lines were as a mater of fact a deliberate move occasioned by Wyden and other politicians. They paid voters about $100 each to wait in the line for at least 90 minutes. On normal occasions, long lines during voting may be caused by technical hitches or huge voter turnup. Therefore, voter suppression is not a more serious matter than voter fraud.

Website crush is a normal occurrence and happen from time to time. The leading cause of website crush include code errors, virus attack, hacking, hosting errors, and traffic errors (Siteuptime, para 1-8). Therefore, crushing of registration sites in Florida ahead of deadline should not necessarily be interpreted as a form of voter suppression. As a matter of fact, the website crush is more likely to have been caused by traffic error. This is because many voters may have visited the website and tried to register few hours to the deadline. Website crush was thus not a sign of voter suppression but a normal system problem.

The October 1, 2020 proclamation by Governor Abbott made it easier and more accessible for people in Texas to vote. The move is seen to have increased the number of days for voters to drop off their ballots in person. The Governor’s proclamation increased the number of days individuals were to drop their ballots by 2,000 percent (Withers para 6). Additionally, the proclamation reduced the confusion that would have otherwise been experienced by sending about 2.5 million mailed-in ballots (Withers para 7). The Governor’s primary idea was to increase the amount of time within which voters were eligible to return their marked mail ballot to the clerk’s office. Voter Suppression or Voter Fraud?

Counter arguments

Although the 70-second video was not a form of voter suppression, there is a need to prevent long lines in voting. The electoral college should put in place mechanisms to ensure that voters do not have to wait for more than 90 minutes to vote. This can be done by ensuring that the regions with more voters have corresponding voting stations. Additionally, strong actions should be taken against politicians who pay voters to stay in the line for selfish ambitions. This is because such actions may create unnecessary tensions claiming voter suppression.

Although website crush is a normal occurrence, the electoral college should have experts on stand by to resolve technical issues immediately they are reported. This means ensuring that the website cannot be hacked and that it has the stamina to withstand access from many people hours before deadline. In case of a website crush, voters should be added time to register and thus reduce voter suppression concerns in the future.

Although the 2020 proclamation by Governor Abbott meant well for the voters, he should come out clear on his intention. This is because his silence about the issue prompted people to take it as a form of voter suppression. In other words, had Abbott explained his actions to the voters, there would not have been commotion and allegations of false suppression. Voter Suppression or Voter Fraud?