Voting: Issues of Power in 2020

Voting rights have been a disputed issue throughout American history, a constant tug of war to enfranchise the disenfranchised. The right to vote has been granted through the Constitution as well as state laws.

There are four Constitutional amendments that address voting rights, the 15th amendment (1870) which gave African American men the right to vote, the 19th amendment (1920) which gave women the right to vote, the 24th amendment (1964) which eliminated the poll tax, a method utilized by some states to prevent African American people from voting in federal elections, and the 26th amendment (1971) which lowered the voting age from 21 to 18.

While the 19th amendment gave African American men the right to vote on paper, states changed their legislature, introducing new barriers to voting such as literacy tests to prevent the African American men from exercising their right. It wasn’t until the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that voting barriers were outlawed on both the state and local level if such barriers prevented African Americans from voting.

The fight for women's rights was brought by the Suffrage Movement, a movement that began long before the 19th amendment was ratified. It began before the Civil War, in the 1820s, when many reform groups were forming across the country (anti-slavery, moral-reform societies, temperence leagues etc.) in which women held in prominant roles. World War I while slowing the Suffrage Movement, also aided it, as the work on the behalf of the war effort proved that they deserved the right to citizenship.

In 1964, Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Texas still had a poll tax. It was only when the Supreme Court ruled that poll taxes for any level of election was unconstitutional in the 1966 Harper v. Virginia Board of Elections case, that poll taxes were abolished.

And as for the final constitutional amendment, the 26 amendment, it was brought up due to the fact that young people were being drafted between the ages of 18 to 21 for the Vietnam War. A catchphrase utilized by advocates of lowering the voting age was “Old enough to fight, old enough to vote.” This amendment seems to be of increasing importance as there has been a call to lower the voting age once again to 16, a call which was made louder following the high school shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.

There is a question of maturity of individuals at the age of 16, a concern of individuals “not having enough skin in the game” (Astor), and life experience (16 year olds often don’t pay for their cell phone plans “let alone groceries, rent, utility bills, or property taxes” (Astor)). Yet as pointed out by students, 16 year olds now have to worry about gun violence, climate change, and student debt among other things, “they do have enough skin in the game.” Now students may have concerns about their futures due to COVID-19. Another argument is that at 16, individuals gain the right to drive as well as work without limits on their hours.

But the fight for the right to vote takes time, as there is a disparity between the written right to vote and the tangible law. Throughout history, the right to vote is a right individuals have had to fight for both on paper and tangibly. States have created barriers to prevent people from voting such as voter ID requirements (two thirds of states require this), reduced voting hours and closing of poll booths (reducing the number of poll booths), lack of election funding, lack of language access, and reduced early voting.

Another barrier that many voters face is the witness signature requirement. Around a dozen states require this, one of them being North Carolina. Previously voters in North Carolina were required to have two witness signatures on their ballot. However, due to the pandemic the number of witness signatures has been decreased from two to one. This helped lower the barrier for voters. Another policy that North Carolina has in place is allowing voters to fix deficient ballots. If a voter's ballot was missing a witness signature, they used to be able to submit an affidavit to confirm the legitimacy of their ballot. Unfortunately, a new ruling has made it so this is no longer the case. For people who are unable to vote in person, this ruling creates yet another barrier for them when voting by mail. However, since the ruling made the ballot curing process harder, it also extended the deadline for mail in ballots. Ballots in North Carolina can now be accepted nine days after election day, if postmarked before or on election day. Due to the changing policies, North Carolina voters need to be aware of new changing guidelines. People should be aware of the barriers, and try to follow the instructions as best as possible. In addition to that voters should vote well before election day in order to have time to fix their ballot if it is rejected.

Voter disenfranchisement is seemingly unobtrusive to the lives of the electorate. The general public must consider the implications of voting disenfranchisement of felons and ex-felons. According to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), approximately 5.85 million individuals are disenfranchised due to felony convictions (and in some states, misdemeanors). The ACLU also notes that more individuals are disenfranchised due to confusion over and misapplication of disenfranchisement laws. Of the 50 U.S. states, only Vermont and Maine allow all residents to vote, and three states--Iowa, Kentucky, and Virginia-- permanently disenfranchise people with felony convictions.

Another major issue about voting power involves how we actually elect our president through the Electoral College. The disparity in voting power based in part on geography has meant that a person with fewer votes has "been elected" president five times in our history. Elizabeth Warren has said that she believes “everyone’s vote should count equally — in every election — no matter where they live.” In order to make every citizens vote count equally we must abolish the Electoral College and replace it with a popular vote.

Furthermore, Citizens in US territories cannot vote in the presidential election, for no other reason than the fact that the territories they reside in are not states, and therefore get no electoral votes. After all, it’s not the people that vote for president, but the states. Only the states are given electors originally by the constitution, and only Washington D.C. is given electors specifically by the 23rd Amendment.