Easier voter registration wins solid support in new poll

WASHINGTON — Democrats’ proposals to overhaul voting in the U.S. won solid — although not overwhelming — support from Americans in a new survey measuring the popularity of major pieces of the sweeping legislation in Congress.

The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll found about half of Americans support expanding access to early and mail voting, while about 3 in 10 opposed the ideas and the rest had no opinion. Automatic voter registration was the most popular Democratic proposal in the survey, endorsed by 60 percent of Americans.

Generally, the partisan divide was stark, as many Republicans opposed measures that make is easier to register and vote and most Democrats embraced them. About three-quarters of Democrats supported no-excuse voting by mail, for example, but about 6 in 10 Republicans were opposed.

There was one striking exception: Nearly three-quarters of all Americans — including majorities of both parties — said they support laws requiring voters to present photo identification, even as the Democratic proposal would ease those laws.

The sizable number of Americans who expressed no opinion on many of the measures suggests both parties have some room to try to sway public opinion as they ramp up efforts to pressure the Senate to act on the bill.

“When you ask questions that are focused specifically on voting, you can’t help but step into what is a super-charged debate that is still resonating coming off the 2020 election,” said U.S. Rep. John Sarbanes, one of the lead sponsors of the Democrats’ bill. “There continues to be a lot of misinformation around what it means to have accurate and fair elections and voting in this country.”

The poll found bipartisan agreement on requiring all voters to provide photo identification at their polling place — something that more than a dozen mostly Republican-led states have implemented.

Overall, 72 percent are in favor of requiring voters to provide photo identification to vote, while just 13 percent are opposed. Ninety-one percent of Republicans and 56 percent of Democrats are in favor. The bill in Congress would require all states with an ID requirement to allow voters to sign a sworn statement under penalty of perjury and have their ballot counted.

The House approved its bill in early March, and a companion measure has had its first hearing in the Senate.

Republican lawmakers are universally opposed to the voting overhaul, calling it a Democratic power grab and federal intrusion into states’ rights to administer elections.

Democrats are hoping to use the federal effort to thwart state proposals that would restrict access to the polls. The Brennan Center for Justice counts 360 voting restriction bills introduced this year.