One of the provisions of the voter ID law, recently suspended by court order, is the requirement to have a driver’s license number or voter PIN on every request for an absentee ballot. That doesn’t seem too big an issue.
I was canvassing voters recently, before the judge’s ruling, in a Davenport neighborhood that had seen better times. My goal was to help people get an absentee ballot for this fall's election. The names came from a list of registered voters provided by the county.
The first lady I spoke with said she would really like one; she watched her grandchildren while her daughter worked. The form required either a four-digit voter PIN or her driver's license number. She couldn’t find her license: lost, stolen, or misplaced, no matter. No four-digit number on her voter registration: you don't get a PIN if you have a driver's license. Could not complete the ballot request.
I offered the next lady my help, and she was happy. About her ID, she replied, "Honey, I'm going on 94 and haven't driven in years, and I haven't seen my voter registration since I can remember." Remember, this woman's name came from the voter registration role.
The third person’s license had been stolen, so no ballot request.
So, is voter suppression a real thing? You’d better believe it! I wasn't registering foreigners; I was helping registered voters request a ballot. Support our democracy. Demand our legislators avoid voter suppression, whether intended or not.
Louise Hales
Davenport