Written by: Audrey Wells; Broadcast by: Sharon Nunn
Dubbed by its critics as the “monster law,” HB 589, also known as the Voter Information and Verification Act, received intense criticism when it was passed by the North Carolina state legislature in 2013. The act required voters to provide a photo ID and proof of residency when voting-in person. It also amended the state’s policy on absentee voting, pre-registration, same-day registration, early voting and other topics surrounding voting in the state.
The law was struck down by the U.S. 4th Circuit in July 2016. In their opinion, federal appellate judges said the law was the most restrictive voting law N.C. had seen since Jim Crow and that it targeted African Americans with “almost surgical precision.” Republicans in N.C. said the law was not racially motivated, but intended to prevent voter fraud. N.C. governor Pat McCrory filed an emergency petition to restore the law, but the Supreme Court refused to grant his stay request in a 4-4 decision on August 31 of the same year.
Jesse Jackson reflects on his and the Greensboro Four’s fight for equality and basic rights for all-including the right to vote.
VIVA’s most contentious provisions include voter ID, the elimination of pre-registration and changes to the early voting schedule. We have broken down these provisions and other contentious provisions and broken them down and compared them to the existing laws and statutes below.
Voter ID
Before VIVA, first-time voters were required to show a “current and valid photo ID” and the copy of document approved by the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA) unless their voter registration included a voter’s driver’s license number, or the last four digits of a social security number which matched an existing State identification record.
VIVA would require all in-person voters, not just first-time voters, to present a photo ID that bore a “reasonable resemblance” to the voter. Without an ID, voters would have to cast a provisional ballot. Acceptable forms of identification include:
- N.C. driver’s license
- N.C. special identification card
- U.S. passport
- U.S. military identification card
- Veterans identification card
- Tribal enrollment card
Exceptions to the photo ID requirement are given to Religious Objectors and victims of natural disaster. Religious Objectors are required to submit a declaration 25 days before the election, or present a HAVA document and sign a declaration of their religious objection. The victim of a natural disaster must sign a declaration that he/she was unable to produce a photo ID due to a natural disaster declared by the President or Governor.
Absentee Ballots
In the original bill, a voter could request an absentee ballot by submitting a written request to the County Board of Elections (CBOE). This request must be signed by the voter, a near relative or a legal guardian. A ballot and return envelope would be mailed to the voter, and in the presence of a witness, a voter would fill out the ballot, seal it and both the voter and the witness would sign the ballot application.
With VIVA, a voter must request a ballot from the State Board of Elections after the CBOE confirms the voter’s registration. The ballot request form must include:
- Voter’s name and residential address
- Near relative/legal guardian name and address (if requesting for the voter)
- Voter’s address for mailing of the ballot
- One or more of the following:
- N.C. driver’s license number
- N.C. special ID card number
- Last four digits of voter’s social security number
- HAVA document (if none of above numbers are available)
- Voter’s date of birth
- Signature of voter or near relative/legal guardian (if requestor)
Elimination of Pre-Registration
VIVA would eliminate the provision that allowed persons at least 16 years of age, who wouldn’t be 18 by the date of the next election, to pre-register to vote. Before, these persons could pre-register, and when they turned 18, they would be automatically registered to vote after their address and age qualifications were verified.
Elimination of Same-day Registration
According to state law, an individual who is eligible to register to vote is able to register to vote at a one-stop voting site in the person’s county of residence during the period of one-stop voting. In the registration form, the potential voter must affirm he/she is a U.S. citizen and provide proof of residence. Once the registration form is complete, the person is entitled to vote that day or later at another one-stop voting site. VIVA would repeal the law and other statutes that allowed same-day voter registration.
Early Voting
In North Carolina, the period for early voting begins on the third Thursday before an election and runs through the last Saturday before an election at the office of the county board of elections. Law requires that a CBOE provide early voting until 1 p.m. on the last Saturday before an election, but a county may extend hours to 5 p.m.
VIVA proposed changing the start date of the early voting period from the third Thursday before an election to the second. It would also require that the early voting period end at 1 p.m. on the last Saturday before an election. In addition, all additional one-stop voting sites must be approved by the CBOE and the SBOE and apply the same hours and days of operation.
SCOTUS Decision
After being turned down by a federal appeals court, the state of North Carolina asked the Supreme Court to allow the state to enforce three provisions of the bill: Voter ID, Pre-registration and changes to early voting days. The state argued this would reduce “voter confusion” that would ensue if the procedures used in the March 2016 elections. Opponents of the bill, including the federal government and civil rights groups, argued that the state already made election plans for November under the terms of the appeals court’s order to block the law, and changing it again would cause more voter confusion.
The court denied the state’s request for this election in a 4-4 decision. This is how the votes broke down:
- Voted to reinstate the Voter ID and early voting provisions: Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr., Justices Anthony M. Kennedy and Samuel A. Alito Jr.
- Voted to reinstate all contested provisions: Clarence Thomas
- Voted to reject the state’s arguments: Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen G. Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan
Other Voter ID Statutes Nationwide
33 states have laws that request or require voters to show some form of identification at the polls. In 15 of these states, a photo ID is required or requested. The remaining states verify a voter’s identity in other ways, like with a signature.
10 of these states, such as Georgia and Arizona, have a strict voter ID law, meaning if a voter cannot identify themselves, he/she must cast a provisional ballot until they can prove their identity. The remaining 23 states, such as Rhode Island and South Carolina, enforce a non-strict law. This means that voter without an ID can be vouched for by a poll worker or the voter may sign an affidavit of identity.
Reasoning for Voter ID
Proponents of voter ID provisions argue these requirements prevent in-person voter fraud and increase public confidence in the election process. Opponents argue there is little fraud like this and voter ID regulations unduly restricts the right to vote.
News21, a journalism institution based at Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University, released a study in August 2012 showing little evidence of widespread voter fraud. From 2000 to 2012, there were 2,068 alleged election fraud cases, compared to the 146 million registered voters in that span. Of those cases, the analysis found 10 cases of voter impersonation that could be prevented by voter ID.
This year, News21 conducted further analysis in Arizona, Ohio, Georgia, Texas and Kansas, states where politicians have expressed concern about fraud. Between 2012 and 2016, there were hundreds of allegations, but the attorney general’s in those states successfully prosecuted 38 cases.
Important Definitions:
HAVA Document: The Help America Vote Act of 2002 requires first-time voters to show an ID. These include a valid photo ID, or a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck or other government document that show the name and address of the voter.
Reasonable Resemblance: If an election official determines a voter’s ID does not bear any reasonable resemblance to the voter, the judges of election present must unanimously agree that the photo doesn’t bear reasonable resemblance to the voter. If judges agree there is no reasonable resemblance, a voter may cast a challenged ballot.
Provisional Ballot: A ballot cast by a voter whose eligibility to vote is disputed by someone who is not an election official. Voters may report to the county board of elections no later than noon on the day before the election and present a photo ID bearing a reasonable resemblance.
Ballot Application: Enclosed with an absentee ballot. It is signed by the voter and the witness. It affirms that the voter is eligible to vote and has voted on the enclosed ballot.
Proof of Residence: A document or form of identification that verifies a voter’s name and current address of residence.
