Three bills currently before the Legislature’s Committee on Veterans and Legal Affairs — LDs 38, 397 and 1149 — call for voters to present photographic identification to vote. LD 1149 proposes more than that, by severely limiting absentee voting and adding other requirements. Its provisions would create barriers that will block our constitutional right to vote.

As someone who proudly serves as an election worker in my community, I see this bill as an attack on our voting rights. If enacted, it would be one of the most restrictive voter ID laws in the country; we have absolutely no need for it. As an election worker, I have seen how well our system of absentee voting works, and that it works to assure the right to vote for senior citizens, people with disabilities and residents of rural areas. As an election worker, I know that we have safeguards in place to prevent fraud, cyber-attacks and other kinds of election manipulation, and we have well-trained election clerks and workers who maintain the processes that ensure secure voter registration and elections.

LD 1149 is a solution in search of a problem. If passed, it will suppress our elections and voter turnout. If rejected, it will be on Maine’s ballot in November, when all Maine citizens can vote to protect their rights. I hope all readers will call their state representatives and senators and urge them to oppose these bills.

Judith Feinstein
Hallowell