Michigan Democrats' lawsuit against the state elections office is an unsavory bit of political gamesmanship that should be quickly dispatched by the courts. The suit, filed in the federal district court in Bay County, challenges the state's balloting rules, specifically demanding that people who show up at the wrong polling place, without proof of registration or valid personal identification, be allowed to vote anyway and have their vote counted. This would open the door to voter fraud and vote counting nightmares. Michigan already has generous policies to assure that it is as easy as possible to vote. Those rules were approved by the U.S. Justice Department and signed by Gov. Jennifer Granholm. Currently, voters who show up at the wrong precinct are directed to the right polling place by election workers equipped with the state's qualified voter file. If their name is not on the state list, they are still allowed to vote, but their ballot is placed in an envelope and the voters have six days to prove they are registered. Likewise, if they arrive at the polling place without ID or a voter card, they can vote, and their ballot will be counted if they produce identification within six days.
The lawsuit, if successful, would eliminate those safeguards and make it easier for voters to cast ballots in more than one precinct. Chris Thomas, Michigan's director of elections, says the state's rules were carefully crafted to meet federal guidelines. He says vote counting will be difficult if the Democrats get what they're asking for. He also said that any change in rules this close to Nov. 2 would create chaos on Election Day. If the election is close, that could put Michigan in the position Florida was in after the 2000 vote. And that may be the real motive behind the lawsuit. Similar suits have been filed in Florida, Missouri, Ohio and Colorado, all battleground states where the margin of victory is expected to be narrow. Having a pool of ballots that could be contested in those states paves the way for a post-election legal challenge. A federal judge in Florida tossed out the lawsuit in that state Friday, saying the changes it demanded would violate federal law. The court in Michigan should do the same.
Michigan does an admirable job of helping its votes cast their ballots. Precinct locations are mailed to voters, are printed on the voter registration card, can be found on the Internet or obtained by calling the city clerk. There's really no excuse for a voter to show up at the wrong precinct. Or to show up without identification. Some measure of personal responsibility should be expected of the voters themselves.