Voter bill draws fire from labor, Hispanic groups

Please contact your State Senator and ask him/her to oppose House Bill 2583. HB 2583 Requires evidence of citizenship for persons registering to vote for the first time in this Oregon. To find contact information for your State legislators: http://www.leg.state.or.us/findlegsltr/ & http://www.leg.state.or.us/writelegsltr/

AP Article on HB 2583 follows: http://www.kgw.com/sharedcontent/APStories/stories/D8AQ66V80.html

Voter bill draws fire from labor, Hispanic groups / 06/18/2005 / By BRAD CAIN / AP

Oregon's largest Hispanic group, labor activists and state election officials are opposing a Republican-backed plan to require people registering to vote for the first time to show proof of citizenship, a proposal that one key backer said was made necessary by the terrorist attacks of September 2001. The measure recently was approved by the Oregon House after sponsors said the requirement would help prevent illegal immigrants from fraudulently registering and voting.

"In part, it's a response to the post-Sept. 11 world we live in," said state Rep. Linda Flores, a Republican from Clackamas. "Citizens want us do everything we can to preserve their rights and to secure our borders."

The bill is directed at people who are in the country illegally and also to protect the integrity of Oregon's election process, she said.

Her comments drew a heated response from Ramon Ramirez, a leading Hispanic rights activist. He regards the bill as immigrant bashing and said it is being promoted by people trying to create "homeland security hysteria."

The state elections chief also said he was dismayed by the proposal because, before the majority Republicans approved it, they defeated a Democrat-backed substitute that would have prohibited paying by the signature for signing up new voters.

Lindback said the state currently is investigating allegations that some signature gatherers last year may have been paid to turn in cards for voters registering as Republicans while throwing away the cards of those who registered in other parties.

"It is disturbing that these issues about where real fraud has occurred have picked up a partisan flavor," he said.

The GOP's voter registration bill is being opposed by the Oregon AFL-CIO on grounds that it would discourage voting by putting unnecessary burdens on citizens who might have problems locating birth records or other documents.

"This is about voter suppression," said Patty Wentz, spokeswoman for the labor federation. "It just makes it more difficult for people to register to vote. Who carries their birth certificate around with them?"

The bill currently is pending in the Senate Rules Committee. The panel's chairwoman, Sen. Kate Brown, said she hasn't decided whether to schedule the bill for a hearing.