Screenshot from Republican-produced voter ID ad of people who don't realizethey won't be able to vote in November. Tomorrow, Judge Robert Simpson will hear the case the ACLU has brought on behalf of Viviette Applewhite and others against the state of Pennsylvania for its new voter ID law. That case should be significantly bolstered by the admission from the state itself that there is no history of in-person voter fraud in the state. Essentially it's a law in search of a problem.
The state signed a stipulation agreement with lawyers for the plaintiffs which acknowledges there 'have been no investigations or prosecutions of in-person voter fraud in Pennsylvania; and the parties do not have direct personal knowledge of any such investigations or prosecutions in other states.'The new voter ID law Pennsylvania passed is one of the most restrictive of all the states, requiring ID that in many cases doesn't exist, for example municipal employee photo IDs with expiration dates, which these types of ID don't actually have. These restrictions could keep more than a million registered voters from voting, and many of those voters don't realize it, believing the ID they possess will suffice at the polls.
Additionally, the agreement states Pennsylvania 'will not offer any evidence in this action that in-person voter fraud has in fact occurred in Pennsylvania and elsewhere' or even argue 'that in person voter fraud is likely to occur in November 2012 in the absense of the Photo ID law.'
The state of Pennsylvania, of course, argued in passing the laws that they did so to prevent voter fraud, which they just admitted in legal documents doesn't exist. But we know what the real reason is. Republican House Leader Mike Turzai told us: "[...] Voter ID, which is gonna allow Governor Romney to win the state of Pennsylvania, done."
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