Blue Sweep LA

Voter Suppression

Voter Suppression in the United States

Through all the electoral ups and and downs over the last 40 years in the United States, one thing has been true: When more people vote, Democrats win. When fewer people vote, Republicans win!

Background

Suppressing Democratic voter turnout is not a secret. Indeed, it has been a cornerstone of the Republican strategy for success. Hear it from one of the “founding fathers” of this philosophy, Paul Weyrich:

Winning an election is a numbers game. If you are fair about winning an election, you do your darnedest to get your team out in greater numbers than anyone else. That is how democracy works ideally.

Or, if you are the modern Republican party, you can make sure that voters for the other team stay home for any variety of reasons. That is voter suppression — a bastardized version of democracy that’s passes for normal in so much of this country.

The Machinery of Voter Suppression

The machinery of Voter Suppression tries to interfere with or disrupt an honest, well-intentioned democratic process designed in good faith. In the US, all elections are conducted by State and local officials. 
33 States are now under control of the Republicans. Therefore, it is no mystery why Americans support Democrats on most issues, but continue to vote Republican in State and National elections, year after year!
  • Gerrymandering congressional districts
  • Voter ID Laws
  • Barriers to Early Voting / Absentee Voting
  • Distribution of Polling Stations
  • Crosscheck Program
  • No Vote for Felons

Federal Voting Rights Laws Gutted in 2013

In the 1960s, Voting Rights laws were passed to ensure that the different States conduct elections in a fair manner — without undue burdens to people of color and the poor. These laws have been renewed every time they came up for review because it was evident to anyone fair minded that the States would find ways to abuse the power to manage elections if it meant perpetuation of the powerful in that State. States in the South and a few elsewhere were clearly to be monitored carefully in this regard. And they were. Until:

  • The Roberts Court Sets Voting Rights Back: Until June 2013, Federal Voting Rights Laws required that changes to state regulations had to be cleared by the US Justice Dpeartment, especially if the states involved had a history of racism in electoral practices. These Voting Rights Laws were repealed in June 2013, when John Roberts, and the 4 other conservatives on the course, decided that racism was over in the US. Now, each citizen who is discriminated against on election matters has to seek redress on his or her own.
  • Did I say “Justice Department?” Well, even if the Roberts court had decided not to get rid of the Voting Rights Act, enforcement of election regulations and pursuing violators of voting rights laws must be carried out by the US Department of Justice. Well! There now sits atop the “Justice” department one Mr. Jefferson Beauregard Simpson — a son of the Confederacy and proud of it! He would never have pursued the Voting Rights Act violations even if he had been unfortunate enough to witness one under his very nose.

Voting/Gerrymandering References

Here are a few more critical links for you to learn about voter suppression in the United States.

  • Read about the Redistricting Majority (REDMAP) Project. It is the GOP’s carefully crafted and executed blueprint to remake the political landscape in this country, state by state! [ Redmap 1 ] [ Redmap 3 ] [ Redmap 4 ] [ Redmap 2 ]
  • As a political wag observed recently, “In America, people don’t select the Representative they want any more. The Representatives now select the People they know will elect them!” It is ingenious. And, it is illegal. [ Gerrymandering 1 ] [ Gerrymandering 2 ]