Arkansas bills that add restrictions to the voting process go to the governor’s table

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One of the most controversial bills, dubbed by opponents as the “No Bottles of Water for Voters” bill, would ban people from entering the perimeter of a polling station unless they were voting; giving food or water to online voters is a crime in some cases. Another measure would prohibit secretaries from sending unsolicited absentee votes to voters, while imposing strict signature matching requirements for postal voting.

Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson’s office told CNN Wednesday it is reviewing the measures.

A new count from the left-leaning Brennan Center for Justice at New York University finds that as of March 24, 361 bills have been introduced with provisions restricting voting to 47 states, as more state legislatures are working to curb access to the polls.

Voting rights activists have said the bills put additional barriers to voting, which will have a disproportionate impact on low-income and disabled color voters and voters.

“What we’re seeing in Arkansas is the most dangerous assault on voting rights since the Jim Crow era,” said Holly Dickson, executive director of the Arkansas ACLU. “These bills not only make voting difficult, but also facilitate the interference of partisan politicians with local election administrators, which could have disastrous consequences for democracy. These bills will make it more difficult for all voters. all political strips: to make their voices heard “.

“We urge Governor Hutchinson to listen to the concerns raised by the Arkansans across the political spectrum and to veto these bills against voters,” Dickson said.

In Arkansas, there are still additional measures that would restrict access to the ballot boxes currently moving through both chambers, as well as a handful that would improve access to voting.

Republican State Sen. Kim Hammer, one of the main sponsors of the measures, told CNN on Wednesday that the bills are trying to “protect the integrity of the vote” and were not based on the loss of the vote. former President Donald Trump in November, which provoked baseless claims. of the electoral fraud that provoked the January 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

“These were taken from real examples that happened here in the state,” said Hammer, who noted a state race in November in which an incumbent Democratic lawmaker filed a lawsuit arguing that errors in the count of votes for absence by local officials led to his loss to a first-year Republican lawmaker. The legal challenges of the loss were eventually dismissed.

Hammer said he hopes Hutchinson will pass the bills, noting that the legislature had worked with local election officials in drafting the measures.

“I can’t see any reason why the governor would not sign them, given the cooperative effort that went into moving these accounts forward,” he added.

Bills make changes to the voting process in absentia and in person

Senate Bill 486, which opponents have called the “No Bottles of Water for Voters” bill, passed the House of Arkansas Tuesday afternoon by a vote of 74 to 23. anyone is within a 100-foot perimeter of a polling place while voting, unless they enter or leave the building for “legal purposes,” such as voting.

Opponents of the food and water ban say there are similarities to a controversial portion of Georgia’s new voting law, which makes it a crime for anyone to pass food and water to the polls within that perimeter. Hammer, a sponsor of the Arkansas bill, has said it is about preventing the election, which is already banned within that 100-foot perimeter.

In addition, the Arkansas Senate on Tuesday passed the House Bill 1715 along party lines. The bill would prohibit clerks from sending unsolicited absentee votes to voters. It would also require officials to provide county election commissioners with a daily count of absence requests received.

HB1715 would require voter signatures on a ballot paper and an absentee application to match the signature on the original registration application. The bill establishes if a voter’s signature on the ballot application is not considered consistent with the signature on the application for registration, then “the county secretary shall not provide a vote by absence to the voter.” Critics point out that signatures often change over time, due to age, injury, and other factors, and that demanding an exact match with the original signature could result in the casting of votes or the inability of voters to receive a vote. voting by absence.

The House also passed Senate Bill 487, 87-2 on Tuesday. The measure would remove the authority of county clerks to designate polling stations and instead give that power to county election commissioners.

This story has been updated to include more details about HB1715 and the responses from the office of Governor Asa Hutchinson and Senator Kim Hammer.

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