A new poll conducted by the Republican National Committee (RNC) shows that 80 percent of Americans perceive voter ID as a key security measure for elections. The Election Integrity Polling Project saw the participation of 800 registered American voters, 31 percent of whom identified as Democrats, 29 percent as Republicans, and 36 percent as Independents.
According to the poll, most people admitted to having driver’s licenses or similar forms of identification and believe that it is easy to acquire such IDs. 87 percent were against ballot harvesting, a practice in which organizations and groups collect and submit the completed election ballots of several individual voters. Ballot harvesting has been a controversial practice due to the fact that it could easily lead to vote fraud. Former President Donald Trump was a huge critic of ballot harvesting. Seventy-one percent of poll respondents also stated that ballots should not be accepted after Election Day.
Concerns about election integrity were seen across party lines, with almost 63 percent of voters admitting that it was either their top issue or one of their three top issues when deciding how to vote. 77 percent rejected the Democrat claim that the idea behind voting integrity laws was fueled by “racism.” 78 percent supported a voting plan which includes (a) presenting voter ID, (b) verification of signatures, (c) proper chain of custody controls, (d) cleaning up of voter rolls, and (e) bipartisan election observers.
89 percent of respondents agreed with purging voter rolls to remove voters who have either passed away or are no longer registered in the relevant area. 88 percent believe that states must not send mail-ballots to people who are not registered to vote and to non-citizens. 66 percent want ballots to be counted as they’re received in early voting. Only 18 percent disagreed with the view. 53 percent said that special voting measures implemented due to the COVID-19 pandemic should be lifted given that most American adults are now vaccinated.
“In a desperate effort to push their federal takeover of elections, Democrats continue to lie to the American people. Democrats refuse to join Republicans in supporting common-sense policies like voter ID because their sole agenda is more power and partisan control,” Danielle Alvarez, director of RNC communications, said in a statement.
Race and Voter IDs
Success
You are now signed up for our newsletter
Success
Check your email to complete sign up
The poll counters the Democrat proposition that voter IDs are racist and must not be mandated. Such arguments apparently are not new. In 2014, Joe Biden, who was then the Vice President, had stated in a gathering of civil rights leaders that voter identification requirements are an attempt to “repress minority voting masquerading as an attempt to end corruption” and asked them to fight Republicans pushing for such laws.
In recent months, this attack against voter ID has only intensified as Republican-led states are increasingly mandating such requirements for voting. Georgia’s Election Integrity Act of 2021, signed into law in March 2021, requires voter identification on absentee ballots. Republicans in Massachusetts are pushing to implement a voter ID law in time for the 2022 election.
American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is a strong opponent of the voter ID requirement, claiming that minority voters are “disproportionately” affected by it as they simply lack IDs. Up to 25 percent of African American citizens do not have a government-issued photos ID compared to just 8 percent of whites, ACLU claims.
Such arguments that blacks are disadvantaged by voter ID mandates have been put forward by leftist politicians. However, these views are opposed by conservative blacks like Republican Burgess Owens. In a tweet, Owens stated that he uses an ID to get a job, drive a car, board a plane, pick up prescriptions, and “virtually everything else in life.” As such, why does asking for ID during casting votes amount to “voter suppression,” he asks.
“You know what’s racist? Assuming because I’m black that ‘I just don’t have the capability of getting an I-D.’ Disclaimer: We are capable of getting an I-D (and even using the internet!)” Owens said in another tweet.
According to a poll by Rasmussen Reports published in March, 69 percent of black respondents agreed that voters should show photo identification before being allowed to vote. 74 percent whites and 82 percent of other minorities supported the view.
According to data from the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), a total of 37 U.S. states have laws that require voters to display some form of identification at the polls; 35 of which have been in force from 2020. The remaining 14 states use other methods to verify voter identities, including signatures. As of May 2021, 18 states require photo IDs.
Internationally, voter IDs are mandated by several nations. In a survey of 47 European nations, 46 were found to require a government-issued photo voter ID in order to vote. In the UK, the Boris Johnson government has introduced legislation to mandate voter IDs in elections across the country.
