If you have been under a rock for the last several weeks only paying attention to SuperBowl hoopla, you may have missed North Carolina’s battle to fight over voter ID requirements which are supposed to begin for the March primaries. The U.S. Justice Department and the state NAACP are challenging this effort. Although North Carolina is not the only state with some form of voter ID requirement thanks to all the Republican elected officials in 2013, the spotlight on them based on their history of racial discrimination. To quote Gary D. Robertson’s article in the Washington post,
Lawyers who oppose the law pointed in their closing arguments to their expert’s report presented last week in court that up to 224,800 registrants lack proper voter ID. The expert also said black voters were more than twice as likely as white voters to lack a qualifying ID and face economic and social obstacles to obtain one.
Why should we be concerned as Maryland voters? Two words: Governor Hogan. This is not a bash campaign at all. First, he earmarked funds not to go to schools but to juvenile detentions and prisons in our state. He also held the funds for the fiscal year 2016 budget to help move forward the proposed building of the Prince George’s Medical Center. We can debate all day on how the Hogan (R) was elected such as low voter turnout in the primaries or Anthony Brown’s campaign not doing enough to get his message out. The bottom line is we still have to hold our Governor accountable along with all of our other elected officials. Going to the polls alone is not enough but I digress.
We have to stay motivated and vigilante about what’s happening where we live. If not, someone else makes the decisions for you. Could what’s happening in North Carolina happen here? I say, ABSOLUTELY. Let’s make sure it does not have a chance to become reality. It is our right to vote. Too many people fought to make sure we have this right, so we cannot sit by idle watching as this right is taken away piece by piece.
For all Maryland resident’s please check out today’s Upcoming Events sections of this blog. The Prince George’s County Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta is hosting an event to demonstrate the new voting machines that will be used in the upcoming primary elections. Share with everyone you know so we are informed. See you tonight!
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