Support Common-Sense Voter Registration Procedures

Voters are now required to show proof of citizenship when they register to vote in New Hampshire. In a state where most people are registering to vote on Election Day, the best way to ensure that no voter is turned away due to lack of documents is to bring back the affidavit process and let voters attest to their citizenship by signing a sworn statement.

HB 365 requires local election officials and the Secretary of State to verify voters’ citizenship when they do not have proper documentation. This bill also establishes that local election officials provide an affidavit for “indigent voters” who attest they cannot afford proof of citizenship, and provide those voters with a voucher to cover the cost of a birth certificate.

• 79% of married women change their last name - meaning that for those women, their birth certificate can not and will not match their name.

• For voters born outside of New Hampshire, the process of acquiring proof of citizenship could take months. Even if a voter has financial support, the timing of obtaining documentation before Election Day would be an immense hurdle.

• The Secretary of State would have to hire a full-time staff member and allocate $25,000 per year for birth certificate vouchers, costing the taxpayers money that could otherwise be spent improving our election systems and supporting election officials. There is no real guarantee that this voucher program would assist in the registration process.

This new process proposed by HB 365 is a costly and inaccurate way to prove voters’ citizenship.