Fighting Swing State Voter Suppression from Another State

[SalvatorePDX]

My question involves civil rights in the State of: Oregon by way of Ohio, Pennsylvania and Florida

I am a resident and registered voter in the state of Oregon. I have become aware that there are voter suppression laws being enacted in swing states like Ohio, Pennsylvania and Florida which may decide the 2012 Presidential election in favor of the Republican Party which spearheaded the voter suppression laws that attempt to limit the voting rights of seniors, minorities, young and first-time voters. Without question, voter suppression laws are attempts to undermine the democratic process." (Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2012/08/15/472...ourt-must.html)

This is a national story and very high profile. My concern and the concern of many in other voters in states where national elections are rarely decided is that the election may be decided in a swing state because of unconstitutional voter suppression laws. This actually infringes on the rights of millions nationwide whose votes will not count because the votes in these high population and important states more often decide the election. Any election fraud or tampering will affect the entire nation and therefore the voter suppression laws infringe or hinder my rights to a fair election.

My question is:
Can a voter from another state bring a suit in order to fight these voter suppression laws? And if valid how effective will the suite be compared to other challenges, most notably that of the current Presidential administration?

Thank you in advance for your assistance.

[jk]

Can a voter from another state bring a suit in order to fight these voter suppression laws?

While I understand your claim (but not provable) to the situation affecting you, you are not affected by those laws in such a manner you would have standing to sue.

And if valid how effective will the suite be compared to other challenges, most notably that of the current Presidential administration?

law suits cost money. Do you have more to spend than the current administration or the entirety of the supporters of the current administration?

[llworking]

My question involves civil rights in the State of: Oregon by way of Ohio, Pennsylvania and Florida

I am a resident and registered voter in the state of Oregon. I have become aware that there are voter suppression laws being enacted in swing states like Ohio, Pennsylvania and Florida which may decide the 2012 Presidential election in favor of the Republican Party which spearheaded the voter suppression laws that attempt to limit the voting rights of seniors, minorities, young and first-time voters. Without question, voter suppression laws are attempts to undermine the democratic process." (Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2012/08/15/472...ourt-must.html)

This is a national story and very high profile. My concern and the concern of many in other voters in states where national elections are rarely decided is that the election may be decided in a swing state because of unconstitutional voter suppression laws. This actually infringes on the rights of millions nationwide whose votes will not count because the votes in these high population and important states more often decide the election. Any election fraud or tampering will affect the entire nation and therefore the voter suppression laws infringe or hinder my rights to a fair election.

My question is:
Can a voter from another state bring a suit in order to fight these voter suppression laws? And if valid how effective will the suite be compared to other challenges, most notably that of the current Presidential administration?

Thank you in advance for your assistance.

That link provided zero explanation as to alledged voter supression laws...it was vague and meaningless.

[SalvatorePDX]

@llworking - There are plenty of links and information regarding voter fraud and suppression. I could make a long list if that's what you want. A simple google search will furnish a trove of news and blog links. I simply had that Sacramento Bee one handy when I was writing the original post. And it had a good concise quote.

http://www.brennancenter.org/content...t_voter_fraud/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ryan-c...b_1799012.html
http://www.freep.com/article/2012081...ression-ID-law
http://articles.philly.com/2012-08-0...er-id-id-cards
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/...gArW_blog.html

The truth is there is endless information and data about the various laws and attempts at suppressing the vote in swing states. Mostly the claims that they are fighting voter fraud are red herrings for the real reason to keep the poor, minorities and youth voters from being able to vote. There is no proof that these voter fraud laws will do anything except force hundreds of thousands of people to spend money and time that they may not be able to in order to get an identification that an ID thief could probably get quicker and easier. There is nothing to fix so why are they trying to "fix" it so close to an election?

- - - Updated - - -

While I understand your claim (but not provable) to the situation affecting you, you are not affected by those laws in such a manner you would have standing to sue.


law suits cost money. Do you have more to spend than the current administration or the entirety of the supporters of the current administration?

Thank you for your reply. I don't understand though how in a electoral system like ours the affect on those of us in less populous states is not provable. Let's say half a million people are disenfranchised in a swing state and it decides a close election in the favor of those who devised the voter fraud laws. How am I not disenfranchised along with those voters and that party? I'm not trying to be argumentative I'm simply trying to understand it legally because I feel like I'm getting the shaft in this situation. I feel like this affects the entire nation.

If resources is not an issue then how would we start? What would be the best way to approach it? Would class action be the best route? I'm not well-versed in filing suits so some clarification would help.

Thanks again.

[AZDeputyClerk]

The less populous state argument is irrelevant. The only facts that are relevant are: "do you reside in a swing state with Voter ID laws?" and "can you prove that permitting the ID law to go into effect will/has caused irreparable harm?" Courts do not like to get involved in discussion of hypothetical matters. The big challenge is for the persons with standing to prove that they were targeted by the aforementioned laws and that the laws prevented them from voting on Election Day.