The Lawrence City Council will hold a
public hearing Tuesday night on a proposal to
require all Lawrence residents to show photo
identification before they vote.
For the past year, the Voter Fraud Prevention
Committee has been meeting in the Mayor's office,
researching how best to implement a voter
identification system and how to get around the
political obstacles to make it work.
 Co-chaired by City Councilor Marie
Gosselin (and Tom Duggan), the committee has met with the
Secretary of State's office as well as the City
Attorney and other officials to determine the
best way to go about educating the public and
changing the city charter.
The committee, formed by Mayor Mike Sullivan, has
determined that the city will have to provide
every voter with a picture identification card
free of charge. Superintendent Wilfredo Laboy has
offered to donate the equipment used for photo
identification cards at Lawrence High, which will
eliminate most of the cost to produce and
distribute the cards.
Voters will need to present the card when they
vote starting next year (2004). Those who show up
at the polls this year will be asked to show an
ID, but if the voter cannot provide one they will
be allowed to vote.
The City Council is expected to pass the measure
with Council President, Marcos Devers already on
record as favoring it. As interim mayor, Devers
valiantly spearheaded the effort to implement
voter identification to ensure fair elections for
everyone and prevent  the endless accusations of fraud which
plague Lawrence elections every year.
Devers' efforts to ensure fair elections was
thwarted when an ethnically charged group called
"Oesta" challenged his efforts in court
claiming it was racist and unfair to Latinos.
Despite the fact that Devers is a Latino and
everyone in the city who votes will be required
to show an ID, some members of the Latino
community also used race to create division in
the community and stop the requirement.
The judge who heard the case stopped Devers in
his tracks saying he hadn't given voters enough
time to get an ID prior to Election Day. Devers
has steadfastly supported the idea of fair
elections and is expected to be a vocal when the
issue is discussed by the council Tuesday
evening.
If passed by the Council, a home rule petition
will be sent to the House of Representatives
requesting that the phrase "…and
require photo identification…" be added
to the city charter regarding voter requirements.
 One of those who opposed Voter ID last
time around is now threatening to kill the
measure this time around as well. Now a State
Representative, Willie Lantigua says he is not
against voter ID per se, but rather, objects to
the way it is being brought about.
Lantigua said that he believes the details on
process and procedure must be in place before he
will support a home rule petition to change the
city charter. He also wants those procedures to
be part of the home rule petition to be voted on
by the House. Voter Fraud Prevention Committee
Co-chair Marie Gosselin and committee member
Dorothy Incropera say Lantigua is just trying to
stall the implementation of Voter ID because he
is playing politics.
Regardless of Lantigua's motives, he has actively
sought to kill the measure by refusing to submit
the changes to the House of Representatives on
behalf of the voters of Lawrence. HE also says he
will vote against it in the House. Lantigua has
even lobbied fellow Reps. Barry Finegold and
David Torrisi to oppose the bill. Traditionally,
the House has rejected home rule petitions if the
majority of the Representatives from that city or
town do not support it.
"I find it interesting that Torrisi and
Finegold supported changing residency against the
wishes of the people, saying they supported those
changes because the Council and the Mayor were
behind them, even though Jose Santiago (then the
State Rep) opposed changing residency"
Dorothy Incropera said on the Paying Attention!
radio program.
"But now that the Mayor and the Council favor
a home rule petition on Voter ID, Torrisi and
Finegold are deferring to Lawrence Representative
Willie Lantigua who opposes this. What
hypocrites!"
Incropera says she is not going to stop putting
pressure on Torrisi and Finegold until they come
to their senses and support Voter ID. "I am
suspect of any elected official who doesn't
support fair elections. "as far as I'm
cocerned the only people who oppose this are
those who benefit from voter fraud,"
Incropera said.
Gosselin said she
spoke to Torrisi and that he will oppose the
measure, in part because of the people on the
committee who support voter ID, proving once
again that he cares more about settling personal
scores than he does what is best for the City of
Lawrence. Mounting pressure from voter ID
committee members and Lawrence City Councilors
will make it hard for Torrisi and Finegold to
oppose the home rule petition in the end.
Representative Willie Lantigua announced at the
last Voter ID meeting that he was opposed to the
present proposal and planned to present his own
to the City Council. Since the only issue before
the Council Tuesday night will be the current
proposal, it is expected that the Council will
hear Lantigua's opinions but not consider a
separate proposal.
The process of implementation and administration
of a Voter ID program is a local control issue to
be decided by local officials and not within the
purview of the House of Representatives. Still,
Lantigua said he wants all the procedures to go
to the State House with a home rule petition, an
idea rejected by the majority of the committee.
Former State Representative Jose Santiago says he
is 100% in support of voter ID and plans on
testifying about the fruad he says occurred last
year when he was defeated by Lantigua.
Residents who want to be heard
on this issue can speak before the Council on
Tuesday evening at City Hall, 200 Common Street.
The meeting begins at 7pm.
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