“You must be a legal resident of Iowa and the precinct you live in and bring a photo ID with you to participate,” the state Republican party said on Friday in a post on the social media platform X.
The party is scheduled to hold local gatherings, known as the Iowa Caucus, on Jan. 15 in which participants will vote for their choice for the Republican candidate to run in November’s presidential election. U.S. President Joe Biden is expected to be the Democratic Party’s nominee.
The state Republican Party posted its reminder after Casey DeSantis, appearing on Fox News with her husband, the governor of Florida, called on women from across the country to join the gatherings, saying, “You do not have to be a resident of Iowa to participate."
Nothing on that list is a right, but the point is you have to have photo ID to function as a basic adult in this country, forget voting. Just going into the world, having a job and a bank account requires identification.
CmdrShepard’s argument here is important - you are looking at the burden to you, not the burden to the least capable person. Voting should be free to all. If you begin to argue that people who can’t get an ID shouldn’t vote, you should also be okay with me setting income requirements above your income for voting (I do quite well). That’s the slippery slope that people are arguing against. Everyone should be able to vote, full stop.
So you want to restrict voting to those individuals who only have a job and a bank account? That sure sounds familiar. Do you also think voters should have to pass a written test before exercising their right to vote too?