The Washington Post writes what we've all been saying for years, since Republicans began their blatant attempt to suppress the vote with new voting restriction laws: "New laws and rulings could cause Election Day confusion."
Fourteen states have new voting and registration rules in place for this election, according to the Brennan Center for Justice at the NYU School of Law. Legal challenges have led to a multitude of recent court rulings that have blocked or struck down some provisions and upheld or reinstated others, scrambling the picture further.
The new rules and the rapidly shifting landscape have already caused confusion, and some experts fear problems on Nov. 8.
“You would think that by 2016 we would have gotten our act together, but in fact it seems things are as litigious and confusing as ever,” said Rick Hasen, an expert on election law and professor at the University of California, Irvine School of Law.
Things are confusing and litigious because Republican legislatures and governors are still trying to keep people out of the polls. Here's the thing about that: that is also serving their purpose in suppressing the vote.
“In periods of change, it can often lead to a lot of confusion for voters as to what the rules are, and for election officials, too,” said Wendy Weiser with the Brennan Center, pointing to problems in 2012 in places like Pennsylvania, where the state’s voter ID law was put on hold and then struck down. “There were also voters in Ohio, New Jersey who mistakenly thought — hearing the news from Pennsylvania — that they had to show ID, too.”
And with just 43 days remain until the election, make sure you're registered to vote. And while you're at it, make sure your family and friends are registered too.
Confusion keeps many out of the polls. Not being able to keep up with the complex legal status of voting laws is one problem. Republican state lawmakers, like in Wisconsin, drag their feet on providing voter education about new laws, and in states like Texas lie about requirements for voting eligibility, even in violation of federal courts.
Chaos around voting isn't an outgrowth of Republican voter suppression efforts—it's part of the plan. That makes our efforts to help get folks registered and to the polls that much more critical. If you want to help, Election Protection, a coalition of advocacy organizations, is one place to start. Go to their website, www.866ourvote.org, to find out what's happening in your state, to volunteer for election protection, or to donate to their efforts. You can also call your local Democratic party office and volunteer to help with voter registration and education drives.