How the Right to Vote is Being Taken Away

By MARIAH WILSON, age 13

Restrictive Voter ID laws are one way millions of Americans are being denied the right to vote.
IMAGE: Brennan Center

Voting Restrictions hurt minority voters according to a study done by the Brennan Center.
IMAGE: Brennan Center

The right to vote is being taken away by new laws that make it more difficult, requiring photo identification from the government in order to vote. Black, Latino and elderly voters are most affected, as these voters are less likely to have photo ID. At least 11 states have passed such laws. People in favor of the new laws, usually Republicans, say they are needed so that people who aren’t allowed to vote, such as non-citizens, won’t try to vote. They say election fraud is a threat to our electoral system, even though there is little to no evidence of such fraud ever happening.

Another problem is that forty-six states have laws that allow people to challenge whether a person is allowed to vote, either on or before Election Day. Challengers often target African-Americans, Latinos, and students, who are also affected when voter registration drives are restricted, which has happened in states like Florida.

According to the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University, up to 11 percent of eligible voters don’t have photo ID. Now many of them can be turned away from the voting booth. That could affect the outcome of a close election.

A voting machine from the 2008 U.S. presidential election. PHOTO: Flickr/Solamu