In the last few weeks, a trial has begun against House Bill 1569, a New Hampshire state law “requiring all first-time registrants in the state to bring a passport, birth certificate or naturalization papers to the polls,” according to New Hampshire Public Radio (NHPR).
NHPR elaborates that “Previously, would-be voters who didn’t have certain documents with them could sign a legally binding affidavit confirming their qualifications before casting a ballot.”
The added requirements for registration are unnecessary and are there to specifically target certain demographics of voters.
In the last few years, there have been increased questions over the voting process in the U.S., no doubt caused by President Trump pushing the idea that the 2020 election was rigged against him due to voter fraud. The N.H. state law received support from Republicans and by extension former Governor Chris Sununu, which I believe is very telling.
Now, I do not think that a majority of the bill’s supporters genuinely believe that the election was stolen or that there is mass voter fraud in the country. Rather, I think that they want to make it easier to rig the votes for themselves by making the process as difficult as possible and discouraging people from going to the polls.
We have seen these tactics with immigration as well under the Trump administration. Republicans will make the process as hard as possible for immigrants to come to this country legally and secure a Green Card, so that they can say there’s an available legal process while preventing people who need to come here from getting the resources required to become citizens.
Republicans want to actively discourage people from going to the polls, a fact that is not lost on people. The people they’re targeting are aware of the purpose of the bill, and the New Hampshire Youth Movement, the American Civil Liberties Union and the League of Women Voters are all standing up against the law.
Bills like these exist because it is not currently possible for them to straight-up take away voting rights from the individuals and organizations they are targeting. They cannot say under the law that Democrats and minorities can’t go to the polls, so they make voting a difficult process.
New citizens will have to bring multiple documents proving their status for their first time at the polls after already going through the difficult process to become a citizen in the first place.
It is easier to blame the voting system for the outcome of elections rather than admit defeat. It has been six years since the 2020 election, yet Republicans will still cry about the stolen election and the fake ballots that have been proven not to exist.
I think this law will backfire not only against those it is meant to target but against the people who support it as well. Young voters, especially those who have just reached voting age, will find it increasingly difficult to cast their ballots. Perhaps Republicans believe that a majority of their voters are older folks who are already registered, but if they want their party to survive then they need younger folks.
According to the Pew Research Center, “Most Americans are not regular voters. Even across the three most recent national elections, which featured higher-than-normal turnout, just 41% of adult citizens who were old enough to vote cast a ballot in all three.”
So I raise the question: Why make it harder for people to vote?
Why not encourage people to go to the polls?
Chloe Erno can be contacted at
