Election Day Tidbit 2: Tennessee Voter ID Requirements, The “This Couldn’t Happen Here. Could it?” Edition

Posted by Mary Mancini on August 7, 2008 under Uncategorized |

Thrown in jail for knowing the voter ID laws in Tennessee? Maybe not, but just as bad is how many will just walk out the door without voting if someone with “authority” says “You can either give me what I told you to, or you can just get out that door and find someplace else to vote!”?

BradBlog has the full story of Missouri Election Integrity Activist, Phil Lindsey, of ShowMeTheVote.org, the victim of needless intimidation and unlawful disenfranchisement, who was arrested for having the right form of ID while attempting to vote in his state’s primary on Tuesday:

This story is unfrickin’-believable. Or maybe it isn’t. It took place in Thor Hearne country, after all. And though she didn’t get arrested and thrown in jail, a similar incident happened to the Missouri Secretary of State during the 2006 election.

A voter in Kansas City on Tuesday — one I happen to know, because he’s an Election Integrity advocate in the Show Me State — was arrested and sent to jail after he refused to show a driver’s license at the polling place before attempting to vote during the state’s Primary Election.

As user “galloglas,” Phil posted the unnerving details at DemocraticUnderground.com.

Or course, the official charge couldn’t be, “He knew what kind of ID he needed to vote legally,” so they slapped him with “disturbance/disorderly conduct…acts in a violent or tumultuous manner toward another, placing such person(s) in fear of safety by refusing to show proper I.D. when voting.”

Also over at BradBlog, links to local news coverage of the incident and similar stories experienced by the Missouri Secretary of State and Brad’s dad - two very nice people.

“Show-me” State Missouri needs a new slogan: The “Show-Me the ID I want Regardless of the Law or Get Thrown in the Hoosegow” State. Wordy, I know, but if the slogan fits…