By Wendy Regier
Nowhere in the original US Constitution does it say that citizens have the right to vote. Article I of the Constitution gives states, not the federal government, the responsibility of overseeing federal elections.
And, although citizens cast their ballot for a President today, they are actually voting for “electors” (referred to as the “Electoral College”) who then vote for the candidates. The League of Women Voters (LWV) opposes the Electoral College and instead supports a one-person, one-vote system of electing the President and Vice President as essential to representative government.
The Elections Clause, Article I, Section 4, gives Congress the power to determine the “Times, Places, and Manner” of national elections. Congress has used this power to establish a single national Election Day and at the beginning of each decade when the census is conducted, to draw up congressional districts.
Over time, constitutional amendments were enacted that strengthened federal protection for voting rights. The 14, 15, 19, and 26 Amendments protect civil liberties for all persons (born or naturalized); prohibit discrimination based on race or sex; extend the right to vote to everyone 18 and older; give women the right to vote; and guarantee that rights of citizenship, like voting, cannot be restricted by the states. The 23 Amendment granted voting to District of Columbia citizens and the 24 Amendment banned payment of poll taxes to vote in federal elections.
Recent Supreme Court rulings have jeopardized the protection of voting rights, particularly for racial and ethnic minorities. With the federal government and Supreme Court unlikely to protect voting rights in a substantial way in the future, it’s up to states to take actions to protect these rights.
While some states have already approved laws restricting voting, others have written protections into their constitutions and enacted laws to expand and protect those rights. We can be proud that Vermont is one of these states.
Sarah Copeland Hanzas, Vermont Secretary of State, has stated that she will defend all Vermonters’ right to vote. Check out her short video: