Former state AG explains the act in Congress that would set federal election rules

Republicans and Democrats have been vigorously trying to set up the ground rules for the next federal election in H.R.1, the “For the People Act of 2021.” On the Democratic side, you have them trying to require all states to allow voting by mail. On the Republican side, you see ID requirements and voter roll purges.

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As far as which side started this, former state Attorney General Rob McKenna says it was a little of both.

“After the election, with Trump claiming there was all kinds of fraud with mail in voting, it was predicted that Republican legislatures would attempt to limit mail in voting, expand purges of voter rolls to get rid of dead people who are supposedly still registered to vote, and limit access to the polls in terms of same day voter registration,” he explained.

“On the other hand, the Democrats want to make it easier to vote and are now doing something unusual in the Congress,” he added. “They’re trying to impose all kinds of federal standards on state voting processes.”

For example, Democrats are trying to impose national voter registration standards and national vote by mail standards that would require every state to establish an automatic voter registration.

“That would be a first,” McKenna said. “Changing voter registration from an opt in system, like I choose to get registered, to an opt out system, I’m automatically registered unless I opt out, which I think is actually done in some other countries.”

KIRO Radio’s Dave Ross points out that one of your fundamental rights as a U.S. citizen is the right to vote. So if the state has proof that you’re a citizen, rather than make you produce it, why not say “you’re a citizen, you have the right to vote, here’s your voter code.”

“It probably will run up against the stubborn independence of Americans who believe that, darn it, I don’t have to vote. I don’t have to register to vote if I don’t want to, and you can’t make me,” McKenna said. “Whereas in some countries like Australia, it’s legally required that you vote. If you don’t vote, you’re breaking the law. So we’re just different in this country in that way because of the high degree of individualism.”

That said, automatic voter registration wouldn’t prosecute anyone for not voting.

“It’s just automatic voter registration, which is — I’m not aware of any state in the country that automatically, without people’s involvement or permission, registers them to vote,” McKenna said.

This tussle, Dave says, seems based on the idea that certain types of voting methods give an advantage to one party over the other.

“It really comes down to whether higher voter turnout gives an advantage to one party or the other,” McKenna said. “So Democrats believe that higher voter turnout is to their advantage, which is why they tend to do better in presidential year elections. Republicans believe that lower voter turnout, limited more to people who are perfect voters, who always vote, advantages them because the once-in-four-year voters don’t show up. That’s what it really comes down to.”

“So if you make it easier to register and easier to vote, for example, by requiring early voting to be available in every state, Republicans aren’t going to like that because it means higher voter turnout,” he added. “Democrats like it because it is higher voter turnout.”

Dave says the idea of a democracy is to have as many people participate as possible, so if you’re losing elections when more people vote, maybe it’s your policies that are the problem. He asks: Why should you base your philosophy on trying to discourage people from voting?

“Well, it’s been around a long time,” McKenna replied. “During the Jim Crow era, the then democratically controlled Southern state legislatures basically prevented every African American from voting, or nearly every African American voter. Suppression is bad, regardless of the party. Right now, it’s Democrats accusing Republicans of voter suppression. Yes, it’s not great policy to try to limit voter turnout. It’s politics, right? That’s what it really comes down to it. It makes everyone a little bit squeamish.”

“Take, for example, the effort in Georgia right now by the Georgia State Senate to limit mail in voting to elderly voters, the disabled, and people who are out of town,” he continued. “I don’t think that’s going to be very popular with a lot of run of the mill Republican voters down there who like the convenience voting by mail. You certainly wouldn’t get a majority of voters in Washington state to vote to eliminate mail in voting. We all like it because we like the convenience of it.”

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