Hidden beneath the current economic debacle and the usual noise of the presidential campaign is an issue that potentially affects each of us and should make us all shake in our boots. The right to vote is being withheld from many of our eligible voters, specifically, college students.
In 1979, the Supreme Court guaranteed students the right to vote in the communities in which they attend school. But election officials can make it difficult. In Norfolk, Va., the local registrar has reportedly barred students who live in dormitories from registering to vote.
Virginia is not the only state whose election officials are attempting to disenfranchise young voters. Michigan, considered an important state in the coming election, is also discouraging young voters from exercising their rights. If they live in dormitories, or are out-of-state students, then official say they must go home to vote. That can be a very big burden for a college student.
I do understand that the locals would prefer to not have all these outsiders voting on local issues. Really, I feel the same way. But this is a national election, one that will forge the future of our nation for the next four years. It is an historic election, in terms of race, and gender, and the magnitude of the issues facing us.
How can anyone even attempt to justify impeding the election process for voters who are attending school away from home?
The most recent U.S. elections have been plagued with the kind of corruption usually associated with unstable governments. We have lost our integrity in the view of the world. Now, when we must demonstrate our unity, local governments are denying citizens the right to vote for president.
How much lower can we sink?
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5 comments:
Why can't the students vote by absebtee ballot if they are so concerned about their right to vote? Absentee ballots have been used for years by our service personnel and embassy staff.
Yes, they can and should use absentee ballots. But the Supreme Court gave them the right to vote where they go to school. So a municipality should not be able to take that away. We all know that first time voters will be more likely to vote if they get the whole "experience". This is tantamount to disenfranchising and large group. We don't need any other questionable elections in this country.
Here's what I think, for what it's worth anyway.
I think that if they meet the requirements to vote in the area in which they currently live, they should register and vote in that city. However, students generally are transient, what we don't want is them voting in two places on national issues.
That's a good point, Jess, and I don't know how that is monitored. It's worth looking into. Voting twice is certainly not acceptable.
Aunt Debbie, you should just worry about your favorite neice cats, and making sure you don't get caught meeting our wonderful Daddy at a cheap, sleezy motel.
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