Rep. Conyers lodges bill to criminalize voter caging

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Congressman and House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, Jr. (D-GA) has introduced a bill to combat voter caging, according to a House press release.

Voter caging is the practice of mailing a letter to a registered voter at his or her recorded address. In the event that a letter is returned undeliverable, a voter is then flagged: his or her registration, and thereby the subject's right to vote, faces a legal challenge.

"During the 2004 Election, challengers monitored every single one of Detroit's 254 polling stations," said Rep. Conyers today. "With a Michigan lawmaker advocating 'suppress the Detroit vote,' it was obvious why the challengers were at every polling place – to create a tense and hostile environment for those eligible voters who simply wished to participate in our democracy by casting a ballot."

Tens of thousands of voters, including soldiers and college students, are estimated to have been disenfranchised as a result of voter caging. The Caging Prohibition Act of 2008, with nine co-sponsors, seeks to make the practice illegal. It would effectively bar challenges to votes initiated by voter caging, and prohibit any person other than an election official from challenging a person's eligibility to vote based on information obtained through caging.

Lodging a questionable challenge would also be classified as a felony.

"Voter caging," continues Conyers, "is inconsistent with the principle that every eligible citizen should be entitled to the right to vote. The [Act] will clearly define and criminalize voter caging and other questionable challenges intended to disqualify eligible voters."

The bill's co-sponsors are:Rahm Emanuel (D-IL)

Chris Van Hollen (D-MD)

Xavier Becerra (D-CA)

Mike Honda (D-CA)

John Barrow (D-GA)

John Yarmuth (D-KY)

Zoe Lofgren (D-CA)

Steven Cohen (D-TN)

Keith Ellison (D-MN)



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