New York, Nov. 6, 2006 —In recent years, the movement for enacting strict voter identification laws has taken on a great deal of steam. Enacted in the name of reforming the system to prevent voter fraud, such laws in actuality serve only to disenfranchise large groups of voters, to the political advantage of the Republican Party.

In “Fraud, Reform, and Political Power: Controlling The Vote, From Nineteenth-Century America To Present-Day Georgia,” a new issue brief from The Century Foundation, Democracy Fellow Tova Andrea Wang looks back at how accusations of voter fraud in the past have been used to justify actions that made it more difficult for less-advantaged citizens in particular to cast ballots, and have been used to gain political power for one party over another. She reviews the history of various voter laws, particularly voter registration laws, which were championed by some who had a sincere desire to ensure an accurate vote, but abused by others to gain political advantage. Wang also outlines how voter “reforms” have been used to disenfranchise women, minorities, ex-felons, “paupers,” and immigrant voters, often for the purpose of political gain.

Using Georgia as a case study of how these practices continue today, Wang goes on to discuss the current debate over voter the state’s identification laws, including the 1997 Voter Identification Law and the 2005 Voter Identification Law. She reports that the debate over these laws have been highly acrimonious, almost completely partisan and largely intended to gain and maintain political power.

In the brief, Wang points out that states with the strictest photo identification rules have exempted voters who cast absentee ballots—the one realm of voting in which there has been actual evidence of fraud. She argues that these work to the advantage of some groups of voters over others because, statistics show, absentee voters are overwhelmingly white, are more likely to have graduate and professional degrees, and are more likely to be in managerial and professional occupations.

After demonstrating that these historical practices of voter disenfranchisement continue today, Wang concludes that while measures need to be taken to prevent and catch fraud that might influence election outcomes, phony allegations of fraud or the specter of fraud cannot be the basis for establishing law and public policy, especially when it comes to exercising the right to vote.

“Fraud, Reform, and Political Power: Controlling the Vote, From Nineteenth-Century America to Present-Day Georgia,” can be downloaded from The Century Foundation’s Web site, www.tcf.org or it’s election reform site, www.reformelections.org. Tova Andrea Wang, who has written extensively on election reform issues, is available for interviews with the media. To set up an interview or for further information, please contact Christy Hicks at [email protected] or (212) 452-7723.