Henry Veotes Voter ID Bill; House Takes Action

Governor Henry today vetoed the voter ID bill backed by Republicans.

Following announcement of the veto, the House passed Senate Bill 692, which will send the voter ID requirement to a vote of the people.

Senate Bill 4, vetoed by Henry, would have mandated registered voters to present additional identification in order to cast a ballot on election day.

“The right to vote is one of our most precious freedoms, guaranteed to all eligible U.S. citizens regardless of their race, gender, religion, income level or social status, and policymakers must be especially careful when tinkering with this fundamental right,” said Henry in his veto message.

“Senate Bill 4 would have established an unnecessary impediment to exercising this most basic freedom in conflict with Article III, Sec. 5 of the Oklahoma Constitution which states, ‘All elections shall be free and equal. No power, civil or military, shall ever interfere to prevent the free exercise of the right of suffrage…’ A small but still important minority of registered voters, many of whom are senior citizens or the working poor, do not have easy access to an official form of identification and, therefore, could be discouraged from participating in the electoral process by the restrictions contained in SB 4.”

Currently, voters’ names must be listed on their local precinct’s registry and voters must identify themselves verbally and with a signature. No other form of verification is required.

The League of Women Voters, AARP and other advocacy organizations oppose voter identification laws, citing projections that as many as 21 million registered voters, including 78,000 in Oklahoma, do not have appropriate identifying credentials and could be negatively impacted by such legislation.

“Oklahoma already has a model state election system, one that has earned national praise for its accuracy and efficiency and has operated without the taint of voter fraud. It is not in the best interest of the election system or Oklahoma citizens for the Legislature to enact new requirements for registered voters and additional and potentially confusing verification duties for election workers that could cause undue delays and longer waiting lines at the polls, potentially discouraging even more citizens from voting,” said Henry.

“At a time when it is difficult to attract more than half of the registered voters to the polls at any given election, I believe we should be attempting to make voting easier and more convenient for registered voters, not more difficult and confusing.”

SB 4 also contained a separate provision expanding early voting days, an initiative advocated by the governor. Gov. Henry urged lawmakers to submit the early voting proposal to him in separate legislation that does not contain voter identification mandates.

“As I said in my State of the State address, I support making voting easier and more convenient by expanding the early voting period. If lawmakers would deliver that proposal to me in a separate piece of legislation free of voter ID mandates, I would sign it into law,” said the governor.

“I’m very disappointed, but not surprised by the governor’s veto of this very reasonable reform," said Senate President Pro Tem Glenn Coffee.

“We believe this is a very positive reform for all voters of the state of Oklahoma. We met the governor half way on early voting, and had hoped the governor would view this legislation favorably.

“When the House passes SB 692, this issue will go to a vote of the people, where I anticipate wide support, and we’ll see Voter ID as a stand alone measure on the ballot. One way or another, we will see to it that our election process remains clean and fair, and that no legitimate votes are nullified by activist groups who seek to tip an election in their favor.”

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Voter ID Measure Faces Opposition

The League of Women Voters of Oklahoma has asked Governor Henry to veto a voter identification bill that it says would present a barrier to voting, and the American Association of Retired Persons isn't enamored of the bill, either.

Senate Bill 4 would require voters to show state, federal or tribal photo identification. Voters also would be allowed to use their county election board voter registration card. Provisional ballots would be available to people who could not produce acceptable identification.

The measure would disenfranchise thousands of voters, League of Women Voters spokeswoman Gloria Caldwell said. "There are numerous valid reasons why certain populations of Oklahomans — elderly, low income, disabled and minority — can't easily obtain an ID," she said. "There are an estimated 78,000 eligible voters in Oklahoma who would be deprived of their right to vote under this legislation."

But Sen. John Ford, R-Bartlesville, said the bill he introduced "disenfranchises absolutely no person or group of voters."

Henry has until Wednesday to make a decision on the bill.

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Voter Proof Of Identity Bill Goes To Henry

Legislation requiring identification to cast a ballot is headed to the governor’s desk following House passage today.

Senate Bill 4 would require citizens to provide “proof of identity” before voting. Under the bill, proof of identity could be established by producing a document containing a photograph of the voter that was issued by a state, federal or tribal government.

The legislation also would allow voters to cast a ballot if they showed their free voter identification card issued by their county election board.

Governor Henry said today he is troubled that the bill may result in a reduction in voter turnout.

“This bill will not prevent one Oklahoman from voting, not a single one,” said Rep. Sue Tibbs, House author of the bill.

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House Rules Committee Passes Voter ID Bill

The House Rules Committee voted along party lines Wednesday for legislation that would require voters to provide identification at the polls in spite of objections by Democrats who warned that the measure will result in eligible voters being turned away.

The committee voted 8-4 to send the voter ID bill to the House floor for a vote.

The bill, which has already been approved by the Senate, would require voters to present a photo ID issued by the government or an American Indian tribe, but allows county voter identification cards to be used as well.

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GOP Fast-tracks Voter Fraud Measure

The House Rules Committee voted today to target voter fraud by requiring that Oklahoma citizens provide proof of identify before voting in an election. The measure now goes to a vote in the full House.

“Any election reform package approved this year must start with voter ID as its foundation,” said House Speaker Chris Benge, R-Tulsa. “Our top priority is to ensure the integrity of our elections, and to do that we must ensure that only eligible voters cast ballots.”

House Bill 1037, by Rep. Sue Tibbs, would require citizens to provide “proof of identify” before voting. Under the bill, proof of identify could be established by producing a document containing a photograph of the voter that was issued by a state, federal, county, municipal, or tribal government.

“For Oklahomans to have faith in our election process, we cannot tolerate any opportunity for voter fraud,” said Tibbs, R-Tulsa. “This legislation provides a simple, cost-effective way to guarantee that no Oklahoman is disenfranchised as the result of illegal votes.”

Under the bill, if a voter is unable to produce a photo ID, that person can sign a statement under oath swearing to his or her identity. Anyone found to have signed the oath falsely would be subject to felony punishment.

In recent election cycles there have been reports of voter fraud in numerous states, prompting lawmakers to enact new reforms. For example, ACORN, a liberal activist group that has registered millions of voters across the country, has been embroiled in countless fraud allegations and was the subject of an FBI investigation.

Some ACORN employees were accused of submitting false voter registration forms – including some signed `Mickey Mouse' and several in Nevada listing Dallas Cowboys players’ names, though none of the players live in the state. Another Nevada ACORN worker was caught filling out voter registration forms using names and addresses copied out of the telephone book.

The U.S. Supreme Court has upheld a similar law in Indiana that required voters to show photo identification.

Last week, former Federal Election Commissioner Hans von Spakovsky noted in the Wall Street Journal that Georgia and Indiana saw record numbers of Democrats vote in November, despite having some of the nation’s toughest voter ID laws.

"With every election that has occurred since states have begun to implement voter ID, the evidence is overwhelming that it does not depress the turnout of voters,” von Spakovsky said in the Journal. "Indeed, it may actually increase the public’s confidence that their votes will count."

House Bill 1037 passed out of the House Rules Committee today. It will next receive a vote from the entire Oklahoma House of Representatives.

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Ford Introduces Voter ID Requirement Bill

Senator John Ford, R-Bartlesville, has introduced legislation that he says will help protect the integrity of the election system in Oklahoma.

Senate Bill 4 requires any individual that votes in person to show “proof of identity,” which can be a document that includes the voter’s name, a picture of the voter, and is issued by the United States, the State of Oklahoma, or a federally recognized Indian Tribe or Nation. In instances where an individual does not have any of these methods of identification, the voter may show their county issued Voter ID card.

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Benge Announces Push For Voter ID

Legislation requiring identification to vote will be a priority for House Republicans next session House Speaker Chris Benge said today.

The announcement came on the same day FBI officials confirmed to the Associated Press that there is an ongoing investigation into whether the community activist group ACORN encouraged voter fraud across the country in an effort to register more Democrats prior to the Nov. 4 election.

For years, House Republicans have pushed to increase Oklahomans’ faith in their elections by requiring identification prior to voting, including a free state-issued voter ID card. But, Democrats have blocked the effort, claiming an ID will disenfranchise poor voters.

“We are not asking low-income voters to pay anything for identification,” said Benge, R-Tulsa. “And anyone who shows up to the polls to vote on Election Day without an ID would still be able to cast a ballot and have their vote counted if they swear to their identity in a written affidavit.

“But in light of the accusations against ACORN, I think we can all agree that it is our duty to ensure the people of Oklahoma trust our election outcomes,” he said. “And the only way to prevent fraud is to have voters show proof they are who they say they are at the voting booth.”

Some ACORN (Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now) employees have been accused of submitting false voter registration forms – including some signed `Mickey Mouse' and several in Nevada listing Dallas Cowboys players’ names, though none of the players live in the state. Another Nevada ACORN worker was caught filling out voter registration forms using names and addresses copied out of the telephone book.
In Nevada, Connecticut, Missouri and at least five other states, fraud investigations are underway and election officials in Ohio and North Carolina also recently questioned voter cards submitted by the group.

The FBI confirmed today they raided the ACORN offices in several states seeking evidence to prove a coordinated national voter scam. The group has claimed to register 1.3 million new voters this election cycle, many of which are now seen as tainted.

“Free and fair elections are the backbone of our democracy, and if Oklahomans do not have trust in our election system, that will only further suppress turnout and increase voter apathy,” said Benge. “We absolutely want to bring new voters into the fold, but we must protect against fraud by ensuring only those able to vote are casting ballots so when our election results are announced, Oklahomans can be confident in the results.”

Last year, Rep. Sue Tibbs carried legislation that would have required identification to vote. The bill provided for a long list of identification options, including a free, state-issued voter ID card, a copy of a utility bill or a driver’s license. It also included language that would have allowed Oklahomans to vote without identification if they signed an affidavit attesting to their identity.

But, the legislation was killed by Democrats in the Senate despite a ruling of the Indiana Supreme Court around the same time in favor of its voter identification law citing the need to reduce voter fraud.

Benge said the legislation will be filed again next legislative session and will be a leadership priority.

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