Remove ballot barriers for students, military

New voter residency rules approved by the State Board of Elections should eliminate confusion and unnecessary obstacles that can prevent college students and members of the military from voting.

The regulations, which must be vetted by the U.S. Department of Justice, would permit college students to register at their campus addresses and also would clarify the rules for mobile military families.

If the U.S. Constitution grants 18-year-olds the right to vote, then they should be allowed to choose to exercise that right. Complicated absentee voting procedures too often become a barrier, especially for first-time voters. Once they skip one election, disaffection and cynicism become a habit.

Military families who bounce from community to community can also fall victim to bureaucracy. The problem is particularly onerous for young men and women in the intersection of these two groups — former military members using new college scholarships to prepare for future careers.

Existing law requires voters to provide an address and proof that they intend to stay there for a while. The new rules state that “a college student does not need specific intent to stay in the college jurisdiction beyond graduation.” Military families also are under no obligation to assert that they’ll remain in a community beyond their tour of duty.

State election officials should be commended for their efforts to ensure students and soldiers can vote, but the new rules may go too far in micromanaging registrars’ authority to ferret out fraud. The regulations list what questions a registrar may ask a would-be voter, but it’s impossible to cover every situation that these local officials will confront. The rules must give registrars the independence they need to police for double-voting and other mischief, while making it clear that blanket refusals that disenfranchise people because of their youth or their occupations are unacceptable.

Virginia’s efforts to expand its electorate come at a moment when the issue is receiving national attention. The bipartisan Committee to Modernize Voter Registration was announced this month. The group of election administrators, former elected officials, campaign professionals and voting experts hopes to replace the country’s inefficient paper-based system with high-tech alternatives that increase voting and reduce errors. One idea is to automatically register eligible voters when they visit their local Department of Motor Vehicles office. A side benefit: Less paper ultimately saves money.

State election leaders deserve credit for sorting out the conundrums facing students, soldiers and sailors. But they shouldn’t shelve the topic of registration reform yet. There’s more work to be done.