NHYD Statement on Senate Bill 3 Hearing

CONCORD, NH - Today, over two hundred voters and dozens of Granite Staters testified for hours against Senate Bill 3, which as amended, will disenfranchise thousands of young people across New Hampshire if enacted. Representative Isaac Epstein (D-Dover), a Young Democrat who serves on the House Election Law Committee, issued the following statement: "New Hampshire does not have a problem with voter fraud, but as the Speaker and the Secretary of State have said, we do have a problem with perceptions of voter fraud. For years some on the right have stoked fears about phantom fraud, and now that the Governor and the President have repeated absurd allegations about fake buses on the heels of Donald Trump’s false accusations. The NHGOP is using a rhetoric of phantom fraud to altar our unique voting system in New Hampshire." “If there really is a problem with our voting system, the best way to address it would be to enact SB197, and give the Attorney General’s office the resources it needs to properly investigate perceptions of fraud and enforce our current election law.” "New Hampshire’s real problem is attracting and retaining young people. We need young people who move here for permanent and temporary jobs to power our econonmy and fall in love with everything that makes the Granite State great. Banning thousands of young people from participation in our vibrant civic culture is both counterproductive and unconstitutional."