Congressman Cleaver Applauds Ruling That Blocks Photo ID Voting Law

CONGRESSMAN CLEAVER APPLAUDS RULING THAT BLOCKS PHOTO ID VOTING LAW

Injunction stops Missouri from imposing modern day poll tax

(Washington, DC)—Congressman Emanuel Cleaver, II applauded the ruling of Cole County Circuit Judge Richard Callahan that blocks the implementation of Missouri's photo ID voting law. The lawsuit, which was filed by several elderly and disabled voters, claimed that the new law would impose undue hardships on seniors, women, minorities and lower income voters who are less likely to have driver's licenses. It also challenged the constitutionality of the new law because voters who currently lack a government-issued photo ID would be forced to incur out of pocket expenses to obtain a birth certificate, in order to prove citizenship.

Judge Callahan agreed in his ruling, "…for the elderly, the poor, the under-educated, or otherwise disadvantaged, the burden can be great if not insurmountable, and it is those very people outside the mainstream of society who are the least equipped to bear the costs or navigate the many bureaucracies necessary to obtain the required documentation."

"In the United States of America we ought to be for encouraging more people to vote as opposed to enacting laws that discourage voters from exercising their fundamental right," said Congressman Cleaver. "Our nation, throughout its history, has constantly moved to include more people in the democratic process. We have included African-Americans, women and those 18 and older, always choosing to amend our Constitution to have more citizens involved in our nation's future, not less. Today's ruling affirms the basic tenet of our system of government that it is always better to have more people participating in our democracy than fewer."

"Missouri's voter ID law took our State in a direction contrary to the lessons of our shared history," said Cleaver. "It is a law whose sole intention was to disenfranchise and reduce the number of citizens allowed to vote. At a time when voter turnout and participation in our democracy is at an all-time low, the Missouri legislature callously, and the court now agrees unconstitutionally, chose to compound the problem."

"To reduce the potential for confusion on Election Day in November, I hope the appeals process moves quickly to ensure the maximum amount of time to educate the public as to what they will be required to do to vote this fall," said Cleaver.

http://www.house.gov/apps/list/press/mo05_cleaver/PhotoIDVotingLawRuling.html