By Marty Keenan

Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach claims to be a conservative. However, his new Voter ID & Registration Law enlarges the size and scope of state government, costs the state and local units of government more money, and makes both voting and registering harder than it has ever been for United States citizens in Kansas.

The first big change in the law, which took effect January 1, 2012, is that each voter must supply a specific kind of photo ID at the ballot box. If you don’t have a valid Kansas Driver’s License, you are basically out of luck. Yes, there are other types of ID’s that work, but they basically have to be issued by the Government. Private sector worker’s photo ID badges are no good. For instance, if you work for Sprint or IBM, your photo ID is unworthy. If you work for the State of Kansas or a county or municipality, your photo ID works.

Yes, one without a government- issued photo ID can go to the state and apply for a State ID Card. If they sign a sworn affidavit saying that the only reason they are getting this card is for voting purposes, they don’t have to pay any money. Otherwise, the ID is $14.00, but $10 for the handicapped or people over 65.

Prior to this law being enacted, registered voters went through the following protocol at the polls.

1. The election officer asked them to state their name. For instance, I would say out loud in front of all of the other voters, “Martin J. Keenan.”

2. The election worker then asked me my address; I would say out loud in front of all ofthe other voters, “3600 23rd Street, Great Bend, Kansas.”

3. Finally, I was required to give my signature next to my name in the voter book.

No ID requirement was needed for voters unless you were a first time voter. If you were a first time voter, an ID was required but it was fairly inclusive. It didn’t have to be a photo ID; it could be a utility bill, bank statement, etc.

Now, keep in mind representatives of both parties already have the right to seat “poll watchers” in the room to detect any imposters.

Kansas is a rural state, and most people vote in their neighborhoods, although there are exceptions in places like Wichita, Johnson County and Topeka. Most people in Kansas know their neighbors.

In other words, when you stand up and say your name and address in front of all of your neighbors, and then give your signature in the book, if you are not who you claim you are, everyone would know. In rural areas the voter is usually known by the election workers and other voters.

This year a lot of voters in rural areas are going to say, when asked for a photo ID for the first time in their voting history, “What the heck?”

The second huge change to Kansas Law doesn’t take effect until January 1, 2013. Effective on that date, new registrants will have to prove their U.S. Citizenship to register in Kansas. In the past, you were required to sign a statement under a penalty of perjury that you were a U.S. Citizen, and that was considered enough, together with the identification mentioned earlier ——- Driver’s License, utility bills, etc. In other words, the presumption was that by signing an oath, under penalty of perjury, that you were a U.S. Citizen; that was sufficient evidence. The oath is the same obligation that witnesses in a courtroom have to “tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.”

Those days are over on January 1, 2013. Under the new law you are considered an illegal alien until you prove otherwise. How do you prove otherwise? Your birth certificate is by far the best way.

There are a few other ways——–passports and so forth; but no one will be able to register after that date without a birth certificate or similar document; Social Security Cards and Kansas Driver’s Licenses don’t count as proof of U.S. Citizenship.

Kris Kobach calls our new law “the toughest in the nation.” He is correct insofar as it makes exercising your right to vote tougher and more burdensome than in any other state. Kansas is now #1 in making it difficult for people to vote and to register.

Now, why all of these changes? What reason did Mr. Kobach offer for the sweeping changes in our voting rules and regulations? Mr. Kobach suspects that lots of Mexicans are voting who shouldn’t be voting. Kansas has a Mexican population of 10.5%, and many of those Latinos are not U.S.Citizens. Kobach has people scared that illegal Mexicans have been stealing elections in Kansas. However, there is no evidence to support that claim.

In fact, anybody with “real world experience” knows that “illegal aliens” in Kansas stay as far away from Courthouses, government offices and voting booths as possible. They just want to be left alone. They don’t want to get caught up in anything government-related, and then get deported. Check the election returns in heavily-Latino Ford and Finney County. Both remain staunch bastions for Republicans.

The evidence that was presented as the rationale for this bill was laughable. Senator Steve Abrams was asked on the Senate floor how many cases of voter fraud there had been in the last five years. He replied: “I’ve been told there were seven.” Even Kobach himself admitted there had been only six dozen complaints since 1997, and few of those complaints involved non-citizens trying to vote.

In short, there is not a proven problem with voter fraud in Kansas right now. Now, if all you care about is making sure that illegal Mexicans don’t vote in Kansas, the Kobach bill does the trick. But it adds so many new rules, regulations and requirements, that fifth and sixth generation U.S. Citizens are going to be discouraged from voting or even registering to vote. It goes without saying that this burden hits traditional Democratic voters the hardest—the poor, African-Americans, young people, and so forth. (Comically, Native Americans can bring their Bureau of Indian Affairs documents to prove United States citizenship.)

No one knows how popular or unpopular a law will be until it goes into effect. I suspect that many long time Kansas voters——–especially those in rural areas——–will be taken aback by the Casablanca-style “show me your papers” attitude. In the real world, I don’t think this bill will go over nearly as well as Kobach expects with most Kansas voters, especially seniors.

I doubt election workers are excited about having to “card” their friends and neighbors. And I doubt that they are excited about asking their friends and neighbors for their birth certificates before allowing them to register. Longer lines at the polls are inevitable.

Our election laws were fine until Kris Kobach sold this “snake oil” to Kansas Legislators. Big Government, Big Brother, Big Spending, and more red tape is not the answer. “Stop Voter Fraud” fits nicely on a bumper sticker. But let’s see how Kansans respond in real life.

The Kansas Democratic Party, supposedly the “party of the people,” did not oppose this bill in any meaningful manner. Most Democrats in the legislature, including Senate Democratic leader Anthony Hensley, and House Democratic leader Rep. Paul Davis, voted FOR this bill. The party of William Jennings Bryan, Andrew Jackson, Harry Truman and Joan Finney folded up like a cheap tent, fearful that someone might lose their reelection bids if they didn’t cowtow to Kobach. Like President Andrew Shepherd says in “The American President:” they were so busy trying to keep their jobs that they forgot to do their jobs.” But it’s still not too late for “We the People” to tell our legislators whether this new law makes sense in the “real world.”

The views and opinions expressed in this post are solely those of the author. These views and opinions do not represent those of HaysPost.com, and/or any/all contributors to this site.