Victory!

A few days ago, Rock the Vote teamed up with a coalition of organizations - The National Network on Election Reform - to urge Governor Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas to veto a bill that would have required all Kansans to show a government photo ID and present proof of citizenship in order to vote.

Props to Governor Sebelius - on Tuesday, she vetoed the bill! This is a great move for voting rights. As the National Network letter commending the Governor stated:

“[This bill] would have disenfranchised thousands of eligible Kansas voters by requiring them to show a government photo ID in order to vote and present a birth certificate, passport or naturalization papers in order to vote. It is estimated that approximately 107,000 Kansans lack a birth certificate or passport. In a time when our country is experiencing an overwhelming voter turnout, we should be discussing ways to ensure access to the ballot, not limit it.”

And as an editorial in the Wichita Eagle stated:

"...the bill is a solution for the nonexistent problem of voter fraud in Kansas that could deter voting by legal residents. In her veto message, Sebelius stated her confidence in the ability of Secretary of State Ron Thornburgh's office and county election officials to keep elections "secure and fair" and argued the bill would discourage and likely disenfranchise voting by citizens without such ID cards. "I cannot support creating any roadblock to prevent our citizens from adding their voices to the democratic discourse that makes our nation great," she said."

A number of states are considering similar laws this year. I hope more follow the lead of Kansas - as well as Missouri - in protecting all eligible Americans' right to vote.