New evidence shows election officials are biased against Latino voters

*This goes beyond Voter ID, this is about  elections officials’ attitudes and actions towards Latino voters. It’s startling to know that a total of 8,000 people control the administration of all elections across the country. VL

By Ariel White, Noah Nathan and Julie Faller, The Washington Post

Voter identification laws are cropping up around the country: 31 states had a voter identification requirement in the 2014 midterms, up from 14 states in 2000. These laws vary widely in the types of identification they accept, even in whether identification is required or merely requested. And many people don’t know whether they need identification to vote, or what type of identification to bring.

Opponents argue that these laws disproportionately impact minority voters, who are less likely to have required identification. Our new researchin this month’s American Political Science Review shows that minorities face another hurdle: bias in the bureaucracy that implements these laws.

Roughly 8,000 local officials – county or municipal clerks and election boards – manage the nation’s election system. These officials train local poll workers, provide information, and interact with constituents with little immediate oversight from state officials.

Here is the problem: election officials themselves also appear to be biased against minority voters, and Latinos in particular. For example, poll workers are more likely to ask minority voters to show identification, including in states without voter identification laws.

Click HERE to read the full story.

[Photo by Joe Shlabotnik/Flickr]

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