Michigan Governor Right to Veto Restrictive Voting Bill

Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder (R) vetoed a package of restrictive voting laws today. One bill would have restricted voter registration drives, using a provision similar to one in Florida that was blocked by a federal judge last month.

“Gov. Snyder did the right thing by vetoing this restrictive bill, which would have been bad for Michigan voters and could have violated federal law,” said Diana Kasdan, counsel for the Brennan Center’s Democracy Program. “In the past two years, a wave of restrictive laws has passed across the country that could make it harder for millions of eligible Americans to vote. These measures, like the one in Michigan, are bad policy and must be rejected. It is good Gov. Snyder recognized that fact.”

At least 180 restrictive voting measures have been introduced since the beginning of 2011. Gov. Snyder is the first Republican to veto one of these bills. Recently, former Republican elected officials, including Charlie Crist of Florida and Arne Carlson of Minnesota, have come out against these measures.

Read an op-ed in The Detroit News from the Brennan Center and the League of Women Voters of Michigan explaining our opposition to the bill.

For more information, visit our Election 2012 page. To set up an interview, please contact Erik Opsal at erik.opsal@nyu.edu or 646–292–8356.