New Ruling Saves Same-Day

Good news for Illinois democracy: same-day voter registration is here to stay. The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals recently invalidated an injunction that barred implementation of the law. A suit filed just before last year’s elections claimed that same-day voter registration violates the Equal Protection Clause of the 14^th Amendment. However, the appellate opinion came down conclusively to secure same-day registration’s position as law statewide.

            Same-day voter registration has the power to bring thousands of eligible men and women into the democratic process, myself included. After my Missouri absentee ballot failed to show up on time for me to vote in the 2016 election, I still had the chance to participate. I went to my local polling station and registered in Illinois in just a few minutes. Without this law, my voice wouldn’t have mattered. Democracy would have moved on without me.

            Common Cause and I believe that people should not be turned away from the ballot box for concerns about the status of their registration. Thanks to this new ruling, elections will run a little more like they should: fair and free.