Ok. I am generally not on board on encouraging people to vote at all.
Those who truly care are more likely to know about the issues and make an effort to vote. If people need extra encouragement from others, maybe voting is something they can skip.
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you are quite simply wrong. the state is free to hold a statewide election to choose electors with their own laws and regulations and no law the congress passes in regard to congressional elections has any effect on that. the state is also free to choose where you can vote for senator, and the congress has no power to alter it. the 17th did not change that.
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The efforts I’m referring to go way beyond encouraging someone to vote. These efforts are about coercing them to vote for the DEM ticket. Those efforts require very lax voting laws, which is what the GOP is targeting.
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By offering free goodies ?
Not directly. But for an uninformed person who is heavily dependent on Government assistance, it would be very easy to convince them they could lose that assistance if they didn’t vote for the DEM ticket.
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Let’s clarify shall we, when you say “the state is free to hold a statewide election to choose electors…”
Are you refering to Represenatives to the House of Represenatives and Federally elected Senators, or are you referring to electors to the Electoral College?
If Electoral College, you are correct. The State legislature can choose the method of selection as long as it is prior to the date established in Federal law and not try to change it retroactively after a General Election.
However if you are using “electors” as equal to federal Represenatives and Senators, you are incorrect.
So which is it?
WW
Ok. So far you’re the only person in the thread who’s been able to explain the intent and substance behind this law.
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there is only one election for which we choose electors. you’re attempt to save face is comical. we do not choose electors for representatives or senators. of course you knew that.
congress can completely regulate the election of representatives. they can do the same with senators except the places of choosing. they can only set the time of the election for president.
Very good. We are in agreement, except for one minor pick.
Congress does have authority to determine the time, manner and places of elections for Representatives and Senators - which is what I’ve said all along, but it seemed you kept trying to slip “electors” (which I understood to be Electoral College electors) in there which was not the point.
As to Senators, when the legislatures selected Senators - you are/were correct. However with the passage of the 17th Amendment when Senator selection was removed from the legislature and given to the people via vote, then the “manner of chusing senators” clause became inactive (Article 1 Section 4). As such federal law impacts the popular vote for Senator just as it did for Representatives.
WW
Its really all about framing. DEMs frame the argument to be about voter’s rights, and the disproportionate impact these laws will have on the disadvantaged. The GOP frames the argument to be about voter fraud.
Neither of the arguments reflects the truth, but thus far I believe the DEMs frame of reference is winning the day. Failure to prove widespread voter fraud kind of makes the GOP frame of reference sound silly.
Used to be just one day for voting. How did we ever manage? 
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Maybe it’s somewhat outside of the frame of this discussion, but I just remembered how different things were in 2004. Same-sex marriage was very unpopular and I believer Republicans getting it on the ballot in several swing states like Ohio helped swing the election towards Bush.
Yes outside the topic of this discussion, but in my personal opinion Kerry lost because he was a flawed candidate and Bush had the power of the incumbency.
tnt
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If you expand access, more people vote.
Yep! Those handlers will have more time to round up the uninformed who would never vote of their own volition.
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Well, that was the main reason. Also, war in Iraq was still fairly popular as people rallied around the flag post-911.
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Back in the day before poll taxes were declared unconstitutional by the 24th amendment there were fees placed on voting.
Now voting should be free of charge.
Allan
tnt
119
The more people that vote, the closer the government will reflect the will of the people.
The will of the people can be dangerous at times.
And that assumes that representatives vote in the interests of their constituents. Which isn’t always the case.
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