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DPW: New Study Shows GOP Photo ID Plans Would Disenfranchise Over 200,000 Seniors, Women, Minorities and the Young

6/14/2005

MADISON – Joe Wineke, Chair of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin, released the following statement today on a new UW-Milwaukee study on the driver’s license status of Wisconsin voters:

“This study shows that what Democrats have been saying all along is true. The restrictive photo ID measure being pushed by Republicans would disenfranchise 100,000 Wisconsin seniors, and potentially 100,000 more Wisconsin citizens without driver’s licenses – primarily women, minorities, and the disabled.“

“The only other state in the country with this kind of restriction is South Carolina – a state that barely turned out 50 percent of its voters in the 2004 November election, while Wisconsin turned out 75 percent. We ranked at the top in voter turnout; they ranked at the bottom. South Carolina is definitely not the model we should follow.”

“More importantly, this study confirms the true agenda of the Republican Party. Republicans are not interested in election reform; they are interested in stacking the elections in their favor and turning away voters like the elderly, women, African Americans, Hispanics, and young people who traditionally vote Democratic. The study also shows that the measure would have a disproportional effect on Milwaukee County. The GOP’s agenda clearly isn’t about cleaning up elections, it’s about crass politics, plain and simple.”

“Instead of trying to disenfranchise legitimate voters, we need to clean up our election process so only valid votes are counted. Democrats believe in tougher identification at the polls to prevent fraud, but not punitive restrictions that would disenfranchise individuals who have a constitutional right to vote. Governor Doyle has laid out a comprehensive package that would improve the way our elections are conducted top to bottom. Republicans should be focused on working with the Governor to put those reforms in place, instead of attempting to construct new obstacles to voting.”