From Progress Virginia:
ProgressVA Statement on House Passage of SB1256
Voting rights advocates call on Governor McDonnell to veto new voting restrictions
Richmond, VA – ProgressVA this afternoon condemned the House of Delegates passage of SB1256 and SB1077, new restrictions that will make it harder for hundreds of thousands of Virginians to vote. ProgressVA called on Governor McDonnell to veto new voting restrictions. Executive Director Anna Scholl released the following statement.
“Our elections should be free, fair, and accessible. Instead of addressing the long waits many voters faced at the polls last year, politicians are pushing new restrictions that will make it harder for hundreds of thousands of Virginians to vote. We ask Governor McDonnell to veto these new restrictions and protect Virginians' fundamental right to vote. Virginia changed the voting rules just last year and there's no evidence the new law isn't working. Changing the rules again will only confuse and discourage voters from participating in our democracy. We've never solved anything in this country with less democracy and we shouldn't start now.”
SB1256, sponsored by Senator Mark Obenshain, would institute a strict photo ID requirement for Virginia voters. According to the Commonwealth Institute for Fiscal Analysis, the bill would make it harder for hundreds of thousands of Virginians to vote while costing the Commonwealth between $7 and $22 million. SB1077, also sponsored by Senator Obenshain and which the House of Delegates passed this afternoon, would require the State Board of Elections to check registrants' citizenship against an incomplete federal database which will result in eligible voters being purged from the rolls.
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