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The Save America Act now under consideration by Congress is a solution to a barely existent problem. We are told it is intended to add a safeguard against voting by noncitizens. The problem is that there is no data to show that the risk of noncitizen voting outweighs potentially disenfranchising millions of eligible voters, particularly women and the elderly.
This bill requires individuals to provide documentary proof of U.S. citizenship in order to register to vote in federal elections. But the barriers to providing documentary proof are greater for certain citizens. Here are some likely scenarios of how the act would play out.
A woman marries and, in most cases, takes the name of her husband. To prove her citizenship, she must present either a passport or a birth certificate. The final cost of a passport is $165. If you are on a fixed income or do not have the disposable income to indulge the government because you have a family to feed, this is a significant amount to pay to exercise your constitutional right to vote. A certified copy of a birth certificate is much cheaper, but, if you are a woman, it becomes trickier.
If you marry and take your husband’s name, your name no longer matches your birth certificate. So you must additionally present a certified copy of your marriage certificate. If you divorce and remarry, you will need to present a certified copy of your divorce decree and a certified copy of your second marriage license to show how you arrived at your current name. If you divorce and remarry a third time … well, you get the drift.
Each one of these certified copies usually involves a fee. If the original document was issued in a state in which you no longer reside, securing it online might add other hurdles, including computer literacy.
For example, suppose you are an elderly person who has no need of a state identification card except to vote, which is often the case with elderly people in assisted living where every expense is paid. This was the case with my mother. I had to track down her birth certificate from Colorado (much easier than it is now) and get a copy of her marriage certificate. I had to show proof of her residency (her contract with the assisted living facility and bank statement). My mother was not computer literate so without my assistance, she would have been overwhelmed.
But what if you are an elderly person who does not have someone who can take the time to assist you in gathering all the documentation required by the Save America Act? Who is going to help you track down out-of-state documentation? Who is going to help you apply online for documentation? Who is going to drive you to apply in person for documentation? Who is going to pay the costs associated with such documentation?
What if you are a mom struggling to support and care for children? Do you spend $165 for a passport? Do you take the time to research what is required and then gather the required documentation while at the same time feeding your children?
Unfortunately, many people, primarily the elderly and women, will throw their hands up in despair at the cost, the time, the energy and the difficulty in securing what is a promised constitutional right — the right to vote.
So, someone please show me the evidence that the prevention of noncitizen voting estimated to be in the tens and hundreds out of millions of ballots cast outweighs the disenfranchisement of potentially millions of Americans. I am waiting.•
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Celestino-Horseman is an Indianapolis attorney. Send comments to [email protected].
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