They have three options when going to the polls. See http://www.elections.ca/content.aspx?section=vot&dir=ids&document=index&lang=e However, Option Three Vouching is getting some heat from a former electoral officer. See http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/jea...erns-over-electoral-changes-1.2630568?cmp=rss My point in posting this is how our neighbors to the north and the south have requirements for voters to identify themselves when going to vote. Canada requires IDs that are almost common to everybody. And, for those very few who don't have ID, this vouching is simply having someone say, I know this person and is who they say they are. Difficult? Unfair? BTW, Mexico requires a special Voter ID card with photo and nobody complains about it. Why is this so difficult to establish here in the USA? [I know the answer but want to see your reaction.]
I honestly don't mind the work-around they came up with for the vounching part in the new Elections Act (requiring the vouchers to sign an affidavit in regards to their vouch). The rest of the Act is ridiculous and should be tossed.
I have suggested many times that if we really want people to prove that they are eligible to vote in an election, then a national voter ID, like Mexico has would be the answer. Surprisingly enough- virtually everyone who demands that voters must be required to prove that they are legally entitled to vote, is also opposed to a national ID to prove that they are eligible to vote. Make it a national ID, supplied free of charge to eligible voters- and you wouldn't hear another squawk from me about requiring voter ID at the polls.
Why do you care if its a national ID or a state ID? States provide ID free of charge to people who cannot afford it. And I was indifferent to a national ID until a few years ago. Now, I adamantly oppose a national ID program. This is what the ACLU had to say about national ID: “Creating a biometric national ID will not only be astronomically expensive, it will usher government into the very center of our lives. Every worker in America will need a government permission slip in order to work. And all of this will come with a new federal bureaucracy — one that combines the worst elements of the DMV and the TSA,” said Christopher Calabrese, ACLU legislative counsel. http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/...-with-call-for-national-id-card#ixzz32JAMNd7G National ID is based on a federal database, and I don't trust the federal government to have so much control. The feds will quickly expand the use of a national ID to all aspects of life that are even remotely related to the govt - to verify identity for employment, access medical care, buy prescription meds, loans, buying a gun, voting, donating to tax exempt organizations, joining a political organization, receiving welfare or social security. Imagine something like the IRS targeting conservatives but using the national ID - with a simple press of a key they can "flag" every member of an organization for a tax audit, extra scrutiny at the airport, shut down their banking ability, and generally turn off their lives. Or maybe something that you might care about, maybe everyone that has had an abortion (known through medical records) gets listed in a file and "accidentally leaked" to a rabid anti-abortion group. Or maybe its a file of members of gay organizations, or abortionists who otherwise keep a low profile but are obviously in the national id database, or members of a political organization that is particularly troubling to the powers that be. Maybe its a deliberate action by the govt, or a rogue govt official, or a bribe, or a campaign contributor out to get his business opponents, or a hacker, but the data will get accessed and abused.
In my state, one has never been able to vote without registering. Registration has always required that you prove age, US citizenship and state residence. You are then issued a voter ID card. You can only vote once at your designated polling place and then only if your name appears on the list of registered voters. Still, my state required photo voter ID's several years ago and passed legislation this year that applies even more stringent limits to the ID's that are considered acceptable. My voter ID card is worthless at the polling place. These laws aren't really intended to prevent fraud, but to make voting more difficult, with the hope of having a partisan impact at the polls. Doesn't take a genius to figure that out.
