MUSG voter ID laws accused of discriminating against students who lose their IDs
Critics are taking aim at a new voter ID law passed by Marquette Student Government, which would require voters to show their student IDs before voting. Protestors say the new law discriminates against people who lost their IDs and can’t find them.
“I’m a second-semester sophomore and I’m on my sixth ID,” said Mary Pollet, one of the law’s most vocal detractors. “My ability to take part in the democratic process shouldn’t depend on whether or not I have my shit together.”
MUSG senator Max Reed proposed the original bill, which was signed into law last week. Reed says that voter fraud is an increasingly big problem on Marquette’s campus, citing stories about the few times a UWM student wandered into the student union, looked around a bit, then left.
“Just think about what could have happened if one of those students were in the union on Election Day,” Reed said. “One person could have grabbed a ballot, filled it out, and accounted for, like, 10 percent of the total vote.”
Pollet vociferously degrees, pointing out that people who commit fraud generally don’t want to waste it on something nobody wants to do.
“If you’re worried about meal swipe fraud or Marquette cash scams, then it’s a good idea to be cautious. But really though, how many people on campus even know anything about the candidates, let alone vote for them?”
This new law is widely projected to hurt candidate Ben Dombrowski, who worked hard to corner the “I forgot my wallet” bloc of voters. So far, Dombrowski’s office has not responded to requests for comment. There is no word on whether the delay is due to Dombrowski forgetting his phone.
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