Upholding Democracy, Ballot by Ballot . | . NY Times Editorial . | . The Struggle to Cast a Vote

Editorial | The Struggle to Cast a Vote
Upholding Democracy, Ballot by Ballot
November 3, 2012 - http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/04/opinion/sunday/voting-rights-upholding-democracy.html

This year, voting is more than just the core responsibility of citizenship; it is an act of defiance against malicious political forces determined to reduce access to democracy. Millions of ballots on Tuesday — along with those already turned in — will be cast despite the best efforts of Republican officials around the country to prevent them from playing a role in the 2012 election.

Even now, many Republicans are assembling teams to intimidate voters at polling places, to demand photo ID where none is required, and to cast doubt on voting machines or counting systems whose results do not go their way. The good news is that the assault on voting will not affect the election nearly as much as some had hoped. Courts have either rejected or postponed many of the worst laws. Predictions that up to five million people might be disenfranchised turned out to be unfounded.

But a great deal of damage has already been done, and the clearest example is that on Sunday in Florida ............