The 2020 election was historic in many ways. It was the largest overall turnout in history, there was more access to voting than in prior elections, and there were a slew of new protocols due to the pandemic. Also, after the election, in part due to former President Donald Trump claiming the election was ‘stolen’, and the plethora of lawsuits the Trump team filed post-election, confidence in our electoral process dropped to the lowest it’s been in modern history. In addition, during the election and early voting, the TV was plastered with images of people standing hours in line, and even showing up the day before voting open just to vote! And, these long lines, were in places that have had a history of voter suppression – primarily ethnic minority neighborhoods.
Consequently, election reform became a major topic after the election. But what type of reforms do we need? Often times the more security measures you place on voting, the harder it is for people to vote. Take Texas’s voter ID law for example. Texas is one of the few states in America that require a birth certificate to get a driver’s license. In addition, with so little state funding for social services, there are fewer locations to even get an ID than in other states. And some TX residents have to travel a few counties over to find the closest DPS. Consequently, Texas is one of the lowest voter turnout states in the US. Conversely, the more open the process becomes, one could see bad actors taking advantage lax laws, which could very lead to an increase of fraud or at the minimum more voting irregularities.
First, do you think we need fundamental election (or voting) reform in this country and why? If yes, what areas do you think need to be improved upon.
