Good idea
When they head to the polls for this spring’s party primaries, Pennsylvania voters will be asked to make critical choices about whom they want to represent them in municipal government and who is best qualified to sit in judgment of their fellow citizens in state and county courts.
But the sad fact of these misnamed “off-year” elections is that voters – for reasons ranging from workaday demands to apathy — will stay away from the polls. If history is a guide, barely more than 20 percent of registered voters will cast their ballots statewide.
So all credit to state Sen Lloyd Smucker, R-Lancaster, for coming up with legislation that could lure more voters to the ballot box.
Smucker wants Pennsylvania to join the company of 16 other states that allow residents to register to vote online. Another 14 other states are moving on it, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
The state government committee approved the bill last Tuesday and sent it to the full chamber.
“The idea is to give additional options and provide greater convenience, and hopefully increase participation in voting,” Smucker told the Pennsylvania Independent last week.
Smucker’s proposal has garnered bipartisan support, which is rather unique these days.
“[Online voter registration] will dramatically reduce counties’ and the state’s voter registration processing costs, improve the accuracy of registrations and official voter rolls, and improve security of registrations by preventing bad actors from intercepting confidential information or failing to turn in legitimate registrations,” noted Common Cause PA executive director Barry Kauffman.
Under Smucker’s proposal, eligible voters would be allowed to register to vote online up to 30 days before an election.
Voters would also be allowed to change their party registration and update their names and addresses online – as is the case in other states.
A similar bill passed the state Senate last year, but was never acted upon by the House. To head off concerns about potential fraud, Smucker told the PAIndependent that his proposal would require registrants to enter part of their Social Security number or another form of identification, such as a driver’s license.
In Arizona, one of the first states to allow registration, 70 percent of all voter registrations are now performed online and there was a 9.5 percent increase in voter registration between 2002 and 2004, according to data compiled by the National Conference of State Legislatures.
Whether Smucker’s plan would actually increase voter registration in Pennsylvania is yet to be determined. But any effort that encourages more people to participate in the democratic process is one worthy of consideration. It certainly couldn’t hurt voter turnout, which is already at such a low level. At this point of the game, Pennsylvania really has nothing to lose.
And his fellow Republicans who control the Legislature — along with Gov. Tom Corbett — who bear the stain of the ridiculous Voter Identification law should make sure it is approved and signed into law.
– Harrisburg Patriot-News