To the Editor:

Can we talk about voter fraud? It’s real, folks. And it’s spreading throughout North Carolina.

I’m not referring to what the GOP calls voter fraud, legions of illegitimate voters rushing polling places to influence an election. The N.C. Board of Elections put the lie to that falsehood. It found that of 4,769,640 votes cast in 2016, only 19 people were charged with voting illegally. That’s one illegal vote for every 250,000 cast. Honestly, does that sound like an efficient way to sway an election?

No, here’s what real voter fraud looks like: North Carolina’s Republican-controlled legislature’s effort to push through a “Voter ID” amendment this November.

Forcing people to produce picture IDs to solve a non-existent problem isn’t meant to protect our democracy. It’s a cynical effort to prevent many eligible citizens who have difficulty acquiring state-approved ID — generally low-income and people of color who the GOP fears won’t vote as it prefers — from exercising their Constitutional right.

I hope you’ll reject the “Voter ID” amendment on Nov. 6 ... and all the unnecessary amendments the GOP has tagged onto our ballot. But if you decide to support this cynical political ploy, don’t fool yourself into thinking you’re protecting democracy. Wittingly or otherwise, you’ll be doing your bit to undermine the very principles you claim to hold dear. 

Stephen Advokat

Asheville