RESOLUTION: The RIGHT TO VOTE is an INDIVIDUAL RIGHT and NOT the Right of a Political Party | Eastern North Carolina Now

RESOLUTION: The RIGHT TO VOTE is an INDIVIDUAL RIGHT and NOT the Right of a Political Party

      The following Model Resolution was written by Diane Rufino

    WHEREAS, for years, we have listened to and read about persons and groups of persons who claim that their right to vote has been disenfranchised. But if we are being intellectually and constitutionally honest, shouldn't we first ask - 'Do we have the inalienable RIGHT to vote in the first place?' and

    WHEREAS, our founding generations predicated the right to vote on a few things: (1) being white, (2) male, and (3) owning land, which our founding leaders concluded fulfilled the necessary requirements to have "skin in the game" and thus being able to vote (Sadly, those requirements only permitted 6% of the persons in the united States at the time to vote); and

    WHEREAS, the US Bill of Rights and the Bill of Rights or Declaration of Rights in state constitutions do not grant individuals rights but rather list/ recognize them to promise them that government will NOT deny, take away, or otherwise burden or infringe on them; and

    WHEREAS, after the Civil War and the changed "citizen body" (ie, body politic) and then the suffragette movement, the Constitution provided special protection to certain groups (first African-Americans, following the 13th amendment or abolition of slavery, and then women) to ensure that they could not be denied the right to vote; and

    WHEREAS, the right to vote is something that most Americans hold as sacred (but almost completely do not understand). But the Constitution is quite clear on the matter: although the 15th, 19th, and 26th amendments (African-Americans, women, and 18 and 19-year-olds can vote, respectively) say voting rights can no longer be limited based on race, color, prior status as a slave, sex, or age, none of these amendments affirmatively state that a citizen of this country has the absolute right to vote; and

    WHEREAS, in the 2001 Bush v. Gore decision, the Supreme Court insisted that there is "no federal constitutional right to vote" but that we have only "the voting privileges our states choose to grant us." In that case, the Judge said, "if the Florida Legislature wishes to select presidential electors without public input, the people shall not stand in the way." And

    WHEREAS, since the ratification of the US Constitution, the document has been amended several times to protect the voting rights of African Americans and women, and to extend the right to vote to those citizens who are 18- to 20-years-old. Each of those amendments took decades of strife and protest to adopt and then implement, yet even now, the language of the Constitution does not provide an affirmative, unassailable guarantee that all US citizens of legal voting age will be able to vote; and

    WHEREAS, states have the individual responsibility to clean up and maintain updated voter rolls. Pursuant to this obligation, voter purges are often used as the most reasonable option. Yet, they can be, as the Brennan Center for Justice claims, a flawed process because names can be inadvertently deleted, thus preventing eligible people from casting a meaningful ballot (Brennan Center's words); and

    WHEREAS, the North Carolina General Assembly (NCGA) MUST petition the US Congress to pass a federal bill proposing to amend the US Constitution affirmatively and unassailably by recognizing the inalienable right of the People, as an INDIVIDUAL, to vote in federal elections (primary and action); and

    HEREAS, the North Carolina General Assembly MUST pass a bill to amend the state constitution to affirmatively and unassailably recognize the inalienable INDIVIDUAL right of the People to vote in state and local elections; and

    WHEREAS, any reform proposed by the state to fix any problem with election integrity, especially Voter ID, will NOT be entangled or even perceived to be entangled with partisan battles for political power or dominance.

    BE IT HEREBY RESOLVED that most Americans believe that honest voting is a cornerstone of our national identity and a cornerstone to the individual freedom that is secured in this country, and that political parties have far too much power and influence in our country and their greed and ambition are dangerous to said liberties. Such greed and ambition shall NOT be tolerated in any way, shape, or form; and

    BE IT RESOLVED that the Right to Vote SHOULD BE and MUST BE AFFIRMATIVELY recognized in the US Constitution and in each State constitution as an INDIVIDUAL RIGHT; and

    BE IT RESOLVED that the Right to Vote is an INDIVIDUAL RIGHT ONLY and NOT at all a right to be exercised or urged by any political party; and

    BE IT RESOLVED that ALL persons have a natural and inalienable right to vote for the representatives in their (federal and state) government and no human authority shall, in any case whatever, control or interfere with said right. The Right to Vote is an INDIVIDUAL RIGHT to be exercised ONLY by an individual and no political party or secret political party, no political party officer, member, and no government entity may force or otherwise urge an individual to register and/ or to vote; and

    BE IT RESOLVED that the North Carolina General Assembly will petition the US Congress to pass a federal bill proposing to amend the US Constitution affirmatively and unassailably by recognizing the inalienable right of the People, as an INDIVIDUAL, to vote in federal elections (primary and action). The language recommended will be: "The right of citizens of the United States to vote in any primary or other election for President or Vice President, for electors for President or Vice President, or for Senator or Representative in Congress, shall not be denied or abridged by the United States"; and

    BE IT RESOLVED that the North Carolina General Assembly will pass a bill to amend the state constitution to affirmatively and unassailably recognize the inalienable INDIVIDUAL right of the People to vote in state and local elections. The language recommended is: The right of citizens of the State of North Carolina to vote in any primary or other state or local election shall not be denied or abridged by any member of government or law enforcement or other official"; and

    BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED that violations of this resolution (amendment) will automatically be subject to fines and jail time. The legislature shall pass any and all laws to protect and enforce the individual's right to vote and to prevent interference and coercion by political parties and by government officials.

    References:

    North Carolina State Constitution

    Caleb Gayle, "Think the Constitution Guarantees Your Right to Vote? Think Again," Boston Globe, January 1, 2020.