U.S. liberals have long hoped that America would be come a bit more like Europe. By that, they mean more secular, more internationalist, and less interested in God-given rights -- particularly the right to bear arms.
However, this is one way the American left likely won't want to imitate our brethren across the pond, even though we should: In England, even one of its most recognizable political figures wasn't able to cast a vote without his photo ID.
According to the Associated Press, former U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson \-- in perhaps the most Boris Johnson thing that Boris Johnson has ever done -- forgot his identification when showing up to vote in Thursday's local elections and was turned away by polling officials.
Despite the fact that the floppy-haired controversy magnet -- who helped Brexit succeed at the polls and later shepherded the country through its exit from the European Union, but resigned in September 2022 amid a scandal about attending Tory-hosted parties that flouted the stringent COVID-19 social distancing regime he had subjected the United Kingdom to -- is one of the most recognizable figures in all of the English-speaking world, South Oxfordshire officials said the former PM couldn't cast a ballot without proving his identity first.
The AP noted that reports out of the U.K. indicated Johnson "was later able to cast his ballot and that he voted Conservative."
"Johnson introduced the Elections Act requiring photo ID in 2022, and the new law was first implemented last year in local elections," the outlet noted.
"But Thursday was the first time large numbers of voters across England and Wales have had to present ID, such as a passport or driving license, to vote."
Now, as with many things Johnson-related, it's difficult to say whether this was a carefully planned stunt or not. During his time as a journalist, member of Parliament, mayor of London and prime minister, Johnson meticulously crafted an image of the absent-minded professor: hair askew, mind somewhere else, yet always profoundly eloquent even as he hemmed and hawed like a man who'd been caught off-guard.
In fact, this was the reaction of Johnson's enemies (and indeed there still are many, as the Tories' dismal showing in the local elections helped prove), who felt there was no way this was a coincidence:
There’s zero chance Boris Johnson “forgot” his ID.
It’s a way to keep himself in the news.
It’s a return to the “HAHA SILLY BORIS WITH HIS FLPPYYY HAIR LOL WHAT A LEGERND” schtick.
Don’t work yourself into a shoot, brother. He’s a manipulative snake and you’re helping him.
— Ethan Lawrence (@EthanDLawrence) May 2, 2024
Anyone who thinks Boris Johnson forgot his photo ID yesterday needs their head read.
This was about making him the focus and getting some of the spotlight and attention yesterday.
Same as the unkempt hair and ridiculous cycling clothes.
No attention is bad attention for him.
— Dermot Devlin he/him (@castleDD) May 3, 2024
Given the political leanings of the people behind accounts accusing Johnson of perhaps orchestrating a stunt, this is probably the only thing that I agree with them on, but here's the thing -- stunt or not, he was turned away.
Picture that happening to a former (or current) American politician of some stature, particularly a former head of state.
As of 2024, 24 states have a requirement to show photo ID at the polls and another 11 have a requirement that voters show non-photo ID, according to Ballotpedia. That's well over 50 percent of American states that require you to show some form of identification that proves you're able to vote in the jurisdiction where you're casting a ballot.
Take the state of Texas, for instance. Here's how Ballotpedia describes the Lone Star State's voter ID process: "Texas requires voters to present a form of photo identification at the polls. If a voter does not possess the required form of identification, poll workers must ask the voter whether he or she 'cannot obtain an acceptable form of photo ID.' If the voter answers 'yes' to this question, he or she can present a non-photo form of identification and complete a Reasonable Impediment Declaration. Upon doing so, the voter may cast a regular ballot. Some voters are exempt from the ID requirement. Voters who do not have a photo ID can obtain a Texas Election Identification Certificate (EIC) at any Texas driver’s license office."
Now, picture former President George W. Bush showing up at the polls without a photo ID. Again, the man colloquially known as "Dubya" was, much like Johnson, a man who cultivated an image of being a little more mentally aloof than he really was.
Could you see him showing up without ID for an election? It wouldn't surprise me. Could he say, without perjuring himself, that he "cannot obtain an acceptable form of photo ID?" No, of course not. Would he be turned away if he forgot his ID? No, of course not.
Or, picture our current president, Joseph Robinette Biden, showing up to vote in Delaware without any ID. (Delaware only requires non-photo identification, but I think we can all agree our 46th chief executive is a man who isn't acting when he goes daffy.) No poll worker would bother turning him away. They'd simply guide him to the nearest open booth and remind him that he's the guy listed under the column that says "Democrat."
"That's D-E-M-O ... are you listening, Mr. President? Do you need an ice cream cone? Here's a double scoopy of chocky-wocky for you! Now, if you'll just follow me and go behind these curtains and flip the switches you're supposed to, you'll get another scoop, too."
In short, this would never happen in the U.S.-of-A., even with states having laws requiring it. Yet, even the most basic voter ID requirements are blasted as discriminatory by the left.
You may remember, many outrage cycles ago, how a voter ID requirement in Georgia was decried as "Jim Crow 2.0" by Democrats and pressure was put on major corporations to boycott the state. In their failed attempt at federalizing voter regulations in 2021 and 2022, the White House and the left portrayed Republicans and moderate Democratic senators who refused to nuke the filibuster to pass the legislation as being on the side of the Confederacy.
Never mind the fact that this is further evidence that Democrats will continue to infantilize minorities until it dawns upon them that maybe this is why they're seeing diminishing returns among non-white voters. If what they're saying is true, there are a whole lot of Jim Crow confederates still remaining in these United States -- as much as eight in 10, according to a 2022 Gallup poll. This includes 53 percent of Democrats, 84 percent of independents, and 97 percent of Republicans. Furthermore, 77 percent of "people of color" support photo voter ID laws -- only slightly less than the 80 percent of white respondents that did.
For once, we're all pretty much in agreement: Let's be a bit more British.
I'm not saying that we have to go overboard and pretend that Jimmy Carr is funny or that the Gallagher brothers are still relevant. However, making sure everyone -- including former prime ministers immediately identifiable by their hair alone -- presents photo ID before voting? God Save the King, baby.
