After every election in Lawrence, there is always someone who shouts that there was cheating. Usually it is the loser spreading a cloud of doubt about the Elections Department, the guards and the workers of the polling stations involved in the process.
A few years ago, and by popular demand, three citizens (Dottie Incropera, Marie Gosselin and Dalia Diaz) took a petition to the State Legislature, asking permission to implement voter identification, which fell on deaf ears. One of the excuses that they gave us was that Massachusetts does not have such law; therefore, Lawrence could not be the only city or the first one to impose it.
Those who oppose the measure say that the requirement to require identification to vote goes against the elderly, the poor and minorities. Those in favor say that it is necessary to prevent fraud.
On Monday, April 28, 2008, the Supreme Court approved that states may require voters to identify themselves with a photo without violating their constitutional rights. The Act “is amply justified by the valid interest to protect the integrity of the electoral process,” Judge John Paul Stevens said in an opinion echoed by Chief Justice John Roberts and Anthony Kennedy (recently retired).
As of April 1, 2019, 35 states enforced (or were scheduled to begin enforcing) voter identification requirements. A total of 17 states will require voters to present a photo ID; the rest accepted other forms of identification. Commonly accepted forms of identification include driver’s licenses, state-issued identification cards and military ID cards.
In New England, Rhode Island requires a photo ID. New Hampshire and Connecticut accept another form of identification. Maine, Vermont and Massachusetts do not require voting identification.
We fully agree with the opinion of the judges of the Supreme Court; we repeat, “The Law is amply justified by the valid interest to protect the integrity of the electoral process.”
We are not fortune tellers but we firmly believe that these upcoming elections are going to make history because of the rudeness of the race due to the number of candidates, both nationally and locally, so we must start the process again.
We will see this time what our legislators have to say.
