One of my favorite anonymous quotes is “Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups”. With a membership in the ballpark of 500,000, the American Civil Liberties Union has proven to be the poster child for this statement. You no doubt have heard by now their oppossition to the Indiana voter Id law, claiming that voter fraud is a “myth”. In order to challenge the law in a court of law however, they first needed a plaintiff to represent, so they went searching for people who were “harmed” by the new law.

One of their plaintiffs is Faye Buis-Ewing who claims to be a resident of Indiana for 50 years. Unfortunately for the ACLU and all like minded individuals who believe voter fraud is a “myth”, Mrs. Ewing was herself attempting voter fraud when trying to vote in Indiana.

According to Ewing and Ann Nucatola, public information director for the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, Ewing surrendered her Indiana driver¹s license in 2000, when she moved to Florida and obtained her Florida license. Nucatola said that a driver must have a Florida address to obtain a Florida driver¹s license.

Now if Ewing had moved to Florida in 2000, why was she trying to vote in Indiana in 2006?

At the Charlotte County, Fla. voter registration office, Sandy Wharton, vote qualifying office manager, said Ewing registered to vote in Charlotte County on Sept. 18, 2002, and signed an oath that she was a Florida resident and understood that falsifying the voter application was a third-degree felony punishable by prison and a fine up to $5,000. Wharton said her office checked Ewing’s Florida residency and qualified her on Oct. 2, 2002. On Oct. 4, 2002, they mailed her Florida voter card to her, to the West Lafayette, Ind. address that Ewing gave as a mailing address.

Ewing confirmed that she is registered in both states to vote, but at first said the Florida registration came automatically with her driver’s license. She repeatedly denied signing the oath on the Florida application. She also said Indiana mailed her an absentee ballot, but she didn’t use it or vote that year.

However, Heather Maddox, co-director of election registration in Tippecanoe County, said Ewing voted in Indiana in 2002, 2003 and 2004, before the Indiana ID law took effect in 2005.

When informed that the Florida voter office said she’d registered personally in 2002 for a Florida voter card, and that this newspaper had a copy of her application, Ewing said, “Well, why did I do that? I¹m confused. I can’t recall.” She reiterated that, even though she’s registered in two states, she only votes in Indiana, adding that she does have a car plated in Florida.

Ordinarily when someone registers to vote in Florida, the state informs the election board where the applicant was previously registered. But according to Wharton, Ewing did not inform Florida that she was ever registered to vote anywhere else.

“She signed an oath saying she was a qualified elector and a legal resident of Florida,” Wharton said. “And the space where she was supposed to tell us where she was previously registered, she left blank.”

Ewing claims she did not knowingly violate election law, and based on the information in the article, and the fact that she had never voted in Florida, I am inclined to believe her. It is much more likely she declared her legal residence as Florida for insurance purposes on her automobile, and that is why she needed to obtain a Florida drivers license. The fact is however, she had been voting in Indiana for a period of 5 years illegally, because she was no longer a legal resident of the State.

It is ironic that the lawsuit which intended to prove that a voter ID law was not necessary, actually proved that it was necessary. Had it not been for the voter ID law this woman could have very easily voted in both Indiana as well as in Florida in the coming election.

Hat tip Stop The ACLU

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