Gov. Gavin Newsom recently vetoed a motor-voter bill that would have made voter registration at the DMV automatic, not optional. It aimed to target the 4.7 million eligible unregistered voters in California.
When people went to the DMV, instead of getting the choice to opt-out of registering to vote, they would have been put on a list automatically, if their documentation showed they were eligible.
Advocates who backed the bill, like Alliance San Diego, said this decision was a missed opportunity for justice.
“This decision definitely was not the one that we wanted to see,” said Itzel Maganda Chavez, the civic engagement director for Alliance San Diego. “We also are in the national spotlight, especially with the presidential candidates, one of them being from California. And unfortunately, California is far behind other states that have already implemented a secure automatic voter registration system like the one that we wanted to implement in California.”
Laura Wray-Lake, a UCLA professor of social welfare, said California currently ranks 25th in the nation for young voters’ registration.
“A lot of states have successfully implemented this and they have found that it does especially benefit, added 2 to 3% (registration) increase,” Wray-Lake said.
A generation ago, voter turnout in the United States hit historic lows, which is why federal and state governments responded with motor-voter laws.
They allowed people to register to vote at the DMV when getting a driver’s license, state ID, or updating an address.
While these laws boosted registration in California and other states, it wasn’t by as much as many had hoped. That’s where this bill would have come in.
But the bill had critics, including the ACLU and the League of Women Voters.
Newsom said the costs, technology demands and a lack of choice in registration were why he did not sign the bill.
"It would place the DMV in the role of determining voter eligibility, a function more suitable for elections officials," Newsom stated.
Chavez said the cost argument isn’t valid.
“I know there was a mention about the budget cycle, but the intention of the author of this bill was that there was going to be a delayed implementation of SB 299, all the way to 2030,” Chavez said.
Chavez said Alliance and other advocates are still figuring out next steps, but they will continue advocating for voter registration.
To learn more about how to register to vote, go to registertovote.ca.gov
