Preserve the secret ballot in union organizing
01/08/2009
From our elections for fifth-grade class president to the last time we went to the polls and voted, most of us have assumed that voting by secret ballot in America is a constitutional, God-given right. It seems so natural in our democracy that most of us believe it has always been that way and always will be.
But neither is the case. And right now, America's right to a secret ballot is under serious threat, hanging by just a few votes in the U.S. Senate. That's why I'm proud to co-chair a citizens' movement called S.O.S. Ballot Missouri: Save our Secret Ballot in Missouri. We're working to amend our state constitution to guarantee the right of a secret ballot. The 47-word amendment simply says: "The right of individuals to vote by secret ballot is fundamental. Where state or federal law requires elections for public office or public votes on initiatives or referenda, or designations or authorizations of employee representation, the right of individuals to vote by secret ballot shall be guaranteed."
You might think, "Who could be against the secret ballot?" But a majority in Congress has co-sponsored an Orwellian-named bill called the Employee Free Choice Act. This bill would do away with secret-ballot elections when it comes to employees deciding on possible union representation. The bill passed the last Congress by 244-185 in the House of Representatives, but it barely failed to come to a vote in the Senate.
Missouri Reps. Russ Carnahan, William Lacy Clay, Emanuel Cleaver and Ike Skelton and Missouri's U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill were among those co-sponsoring this legislation, which would do away with the current secret ballot guarantee. It only failed final passage because 60 votes were needed in the Senate to end the debate. In the new Congress, that 60-vote threshold may be reached.
Perhaps some need a reminder about why we use a secret ballot in America. The first president of the United States elected by secret ballot was Grover Cleveland in 1892. After the Civil War and ratification of the 14th Amendment, the secret ballot was introduced to end the intimidation and coercion of black voters who often feared that voting the "wrong way" on a publicly known ballot could lead to physical harm, even lynching.
The secret ballot has become a hallmark of civil rights in America, allowing all of us to vote without fear of reprisal. No wonder persons as diverse as the Rev. Al Sharpton and past presidential nominees George McGovern and John McCain all oppose ending the use of secret ballots. It's also why Dave Rouchka, Patty Penny and Gene Schwartz have joined with me as co-chairs of the S.O.S. Ballot initiative in Missouri.
The fear of intimidation is exactly why the United States supports secret-ballot elections in emerging democracies around the world. How ironic it would be for Congress to continue to call for secret-ballot elections in other countries and to continue to use the secret ballot when electing its own leadership, and yet vote to end secret-ballot elections by employees.
We need to reaffirm the secret ballot in our state constitution. We're in the process of gathering the 151,274 voter signatures to ensure that we all have a right to vote for its protection.
We're sending an S.O.S. to voters who want free and fair elections without fear of voter intimidation or reprisal. We need a state constitutional amendment to say clearly that in Missouri we will vote by secret ballot. S.O.S. Ballot Missouri gives us that opportunity.
John Loudon is a former Republican state senator from Chesterfield and a co-chair of Save Our Secret Ballot Missouri.