More Voter ID Stuff
Numbers from the state elections folks suggest voter ID could be more of a problem for Democrats than Republicans suggest.
More Voter ID Stuff
John Baer, Daily News Political Columnist
Not to rile those who still believe the state's new voter ID law is all about fighting fraud and has nothing to do with depressing the Democratic vote in a General Election year, but...
Gov. Corbett's appointed Secretary of the Commonwealth, Carol Aichele, who's department oversee elections, released some numbers mid-afternoon Tuesday before the July 4 holiday (certainly just a coincidence) that might help Democratic claims that the law has more to do with politics than fraud.
The numbers, as reported in the July 4 Inky, say a match-up of voter registration rolls and PennDOT photo ID data shows that 9% of statewide voters do not have photo IDs.
The secretary initiallly put the number at just 1%.
PennDOT IDs are the most common photo IDs accepted under the new law in order to vote.
The new data shows 758,939 voters could not be matched with PennDOT IDs.
The county-by-county breakdown shows the largest concentration of such voters is in Philly (186,830) and Allegheny County (99,218), both Democratic strongholds.
The total of just these the two counties (286,048) is more than three times the total votes former Democratic Congressman Joe Sestak lost by in his 2010 Senate race against Republican Pat Toomey. Toomey beat Sestak by 80,229 votes.
The just-released numbers include "inactive" voters and those who may have other photo IDs, and the department says it will contact all voters without PennDOT IDs by letter this summer to remind them of the new law.
Still, when coupled with recent remarks by Republican House Leader Mike Turzai that voter ID will "allow" Mitt Romney to carry Pennsylvania this year, the state data seems to bolster claims that fighting fraud isn't the only thing the law's about.
The issue, which is getting national attention, is headed to Commonwealth Court July 25 and, almost certainly, will end up in the state Supreme Court.
BAER ,the jig is up ,the balance will be restored and the right view
will rise again. As we get rid of people like you, corrupt unions, black activist and life long free riders who are destroying a great city . Get a real job you suck.....................— goodsax- @cuddles, you must really like John Wayne movies. What is the big deal with getting an ID? just try to get into some democratic fund raising function without an ID. Bet you are refused! If you don't want Voter ID's, then why not do away with drivers licenses, or the requirement to produce an ID to open an investment, or to drink, or to buy cigarettes, or to buy OTC drugs, or to buy health insurance, or... At one time or another these were the darling causes of the liberal left in their quest to control the people under the guise of helping them.— junethe4th
John is the author of the book "On The Front Lines of Pennsylvania Politics: Twenty-Five Years of Keystone Reporting" (The History Press, 2012). Reach John at baerj@phillynews.com.
