Same-Day Voter Registration Is Here! ... Next Year (Maybe)
Someday you'll be able to vote simply by driving your Prius past the Whole Foods -- your desires will be tallied automatically because we all know who you're going to vote for.
Rob Boudon / Flickr
Until then, Gov. Jerry Brown saves the day with same-day voter registration in California. Yay!
Except that ...
... you won't be able to do this until at least 2014.
No, for now you'll have to get your butt to the post office and sign up if you already haven't (or -- see below -- pursue a new option).
Brown still trumpeted his signing of the law by '70s-mustache-sporting West Hollywood state assemblyman Mike Feuer yesterday as a triumph against those (aka Republicans) who seek to restrict voting by minorities and / or others without proper ID. He says:
Voting -- the sacred right of every citizen -- should be simple and convenient. While other states try to restrict voters with new laws that burden the process, California allows voters to register online -- and even on Election Day.
You see, the GOP has been on a tear in states like Pennsylvania, where lawmakers are attempting to implement laws that require certain kinds of photo IDs for voting.
While they argue that the idea is to stomp out (virtually nonexistent) voter fraud, the real aim here is to deny votes from folks -- African-Americans, Latinos -- who lean Democrat but who are less likely to have traditional forms of ID (because, you know, they ride the bus).
It's a sad ploy that should be met with Democratic efforts to deny people who don't have proper monthly bus passes the right to vote. Orale!
But we digress. California is moving in the right direction with this same-day action. And you can even register to vote online for this presidential election if your signature is already on file with the DMV. You have until Oct. 22.
California is so cool. Except for the Prius drivers.
[@dennisjromero / djromero@laweekly.com / @LAWeeklyNews]
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