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For Immediate Release
September 19, 2005
Contact: Amaya Smith - 202-863-8148
Dean Statement on Baker-Carter Commission Report
National Voter ID Would Disenfranchise Millions of Voters
Washington, DC-Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean
issued the following statement in response to the report issued by the
Baker-Carter Commission on Federal Election Reform, which called for the
implementation of a national voter ID requirement. Such a move would
make it more difficult for Americans to exercise their right to vote, as
voter ID requirements disproportionately place an additional burden on
poor people, seniors, minorities, rural voters, and disabled Americans.
Even Supreme Court Chief Justice Nominee John Roberts recently stated
that "without access to the ballot box, people are not in the position
to protect any other rights that are important to them" and that the
right to vote ensures all other rights and is the "most precious right
that we have as Americans."
"The right to vote is a fundamental freedom and a fundamental
underpinning of our democracy," said DNC Chairman Dean. "The right
to vote also ensures every American the opportunity to participate in
our democracy. And given that only 60 percent of eligible voters
participated in the last election, we should do everything we can to
make it easier for people to exercise their right to vote, not harder.
As Democrats have previously stated, we should also take steps to
restore Americans' confidence that they will not only have the
opportunity to vote but the right to have that vote counted.
"The DNC is concerned and disappointed that the Baker-Carter
Commission on Federal Election Reform, over the strong dissent of some
of its most distinguished members, has seen fit to support a 'national
ID card' that threatens to deny the right to vote to millions of
citizens who are lawfully registered and eligible to do so. The
commission's recommendations create additional bureaucratic barriers
to the ballot box, despite the fact - as the Commission itself concedes
- that there is simply no evidence of the kind of widespread
impersonation fraud that could remotely justify imposing such a new
obstacle. In Ohio, the League of Women Voters found only four instances
of impersonation out of 9 million votes, and the Secretary of State of
Georgia reported that there was not a single instance of voter fraud
during her tenure.
"On a positive note, the commission attempts to address these
challenges by recommending national ID's with no associated costs. The
commission also highlighted the need for a paper trail, which we also
agree with. Unfortunately, while there are a number of positive
recommendations in the Baker-Carter Commission's report, their support
for a national voter ID creates barriers, not bridges, to voting.
"I agree with the late Justice Thurgood Marshall: the right to vote
is a cherished and fundamental right that should be respected and
protected by our Democracy. In the face of voting irregularities in
states like Ohio and Florida, and a new recognition by the government
that those living in poverty have been consistently left behind, now is
not the time to restrict the right of all Americans to fully participate
in our democracy."
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Paid for and authorized by the Democratic National Committee,
www.democrats.org. This communication is not authorized by any
candidate or candidate's committee.
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