Registration

Introduction to Registration

Registration, in electoral systems, method usually used to identify voters who are qualified to participate in an election. The act of registration is not, in a strict legal sense, a qualification for voting in the way that age, residence, race, literacy, and religion have sometimes been. It is, rather, a technique for determining that prospective voters are properly qualified according to law. Voters commonly register by submitting proof to authorized officials that they have met the prescribed qualifications. The 15th Amendment of the Constitution of the United States provides that “the right to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.”

Since the beginning of the 19th century, most European countries have required voters to register. In the United States, voters were first required to register in Massachusetts in 1800. Not until after the American Civil War (1861-1865), however, were registration procedures adopted by most states, largely at the urging of reformers who hoped to restrict the illegal activities of urban political machines. The registration of voters provided a method for preventing such fraudulent voting techniques as “repeating,” or the casting of more than one ballot, which was once notoriously prevalent throughout many urban areas. Even today, registration in some states is required only in the larger cities.

Most states have found that the permanent registration of voters is an adequate safeguard against repeating, and under this system a voter need not reregister unless he or she moves to a new residence or in some other way becomes temporarily disqualified. Some jurisdictions, however, notably larger cities, have adopted a system of periodic registration that requires the voter to reregister at specific intervals so that voting lists may be kept current and accurate. Spokespersons for minority groups, moreover, have often encouraged the extensive registration of voters as a means of ensuring fair representation of all groups in the electoral process. Many of their efforts have been directed toward overcoming barriers to registration.

In 1993 the Congress of the United States passed the National Voter Registration Act, which changed the voter registration procedures for federal elections. The law was designed to make voter registration more flexible in order to increase voter turnout for elections. The law, often called the ‘motor voter law,’ requires that voter registration be available when receiving or renewing a driver’s license; at military recruitment stations; by mail; and at welfare and disability benefits offices. The law took effect in 1995; most states implemented its provisions that year.” (1)

Door to Door Registration in Election Law

Identification and registration of all qualified voters by going doorto- door in every electoral district/ constituency.

Resources

See Also

• Election Law
• Electoral Laws
• Electoral Legislation

Resources

Notes and References

• Information about Registration in the Encarta Online Encyclopedia

Guide to Registration