House election reform debate lively

OLYMPIA – Lawmakers clashed late Thursday in the state House of Representatives, with Democrats pushing election reforms that Republicans called far too weak to ensure accuracy and integrity.

“What we want to do is restore trust in the system,” said Rep. Richard DeBolt, R-Chehalis.

Democrats, however, say the state’s election system isn’t nearly as broken as Republicans maintain. Raise the bar unnecessarily high, they said, and legitimate voters might be disenfranchised.

“It is our goal to ensure that all voters have no interference in their right” to vote, said Rep. Kathy Haigh, D-Shelton.

“They (Republicans) are looking for the monster under the bed,” said Rep. Sam Hunt, D-Olympia.

The bills were still being hotly debated late Thursday, but Democrats –who hold a 55 to 43 majority in the House – were expected to prevail. The Senate, meanwhile, passed a bill Thursday night to make it easier for counties to switch to all-mail voting, although opponents criticized the measure for allowing the elimination of poll sites.

Republicans are still smarting – and suing – over last November’s gubernatorial election, which ended after two months and three counts. Democrat Christine Gregoire won by 129 votes out of nearly 2.9 million.

It was the closest statewide election in Washington history, and Republicans, citing misplaced ballots and other mistakes, say that the ultra-slim margin of error makes it impossible to say who won. They’re calling for a new election, and new election rules.

“Voting is the very foundation of our form of government,” said Rep. Toby Nixon, R-Kirkland. “Government that is not legitimately elected is tyranny.”

Republicans wanted more stringent requirements for identifying voters at the polls, such as requiring a photo ID.

“Isn’t it important to make sure that the people who are voting are properly identified? We do it for a kindergartner,” said Rep. Ed Orcutt, R-Kalama.

Some called for every voter in the state to re-register. And Republicans are particularly concerned about non-citizens voting. Rep. Bill Hinkle, R-Cle Elum, wanted to require proof of citizenship from anyone registering to vote. Rep. Jim Clements, R-Selah, had a different version: requiring all voting applicants to take an oath affirming that they are, in fact, eligible to vote.

Democrats said that re-registration would be impossible.

“I know you take this issue very seriously, as we do,” Haigh told Republicans. “But to remove people from the list and to start over again is simply against federal law.”

Plus, she said, ongoing accountability is the key, not rebuilding a list that would quickly become outdated as people die and are convicted of felonies.

“Kicking everybody off and thinking we’ve fixed it is false hope,” she said.

Other Republican amendments would allow anyone to challenge a voter’s registration if the person’s given address can’t possibly be a legal residence, and to make unqualified registration a Class C felony.