<p> Voter-identification (ID) proponents claim that requiring voters to present photo-ID cards prevents fraud. Supported by a comprehensive empirical review, voter-ID opponents argue that significant voter fraud is nonexistent and that such restrictive laws suppress turnout of historically disenfranchised peoples. By analyzing testimonial letters to a state-legislature committee hearing, I show how repeating the false truth-claims can produce wide acceptance, through outright deception and cognitive biases. Focusing on the State of Kansas, my paper asks, “How do proponents of strict voter-ID laws frame their cases for relevant legislation?” and “Where does the research originate that they cite in state legislative hearings to support their claims?” From a content-analysis method of tallying critical words, phrases, and concepts, I tailored a discourse-analysis (DA) discipline. While analyzing grammatical structures, I focused more on the specific social, cultural, and political significances. Using terms and phrases such as “Those” “diseased” “Others” are “stealing <i>Our</i> way of life,” the political DA reveals that voter-ID proponents dehumanize the alleged perpetrators of voter fraud (often referenced as “illegals”). My five primary findings reveal how voter-ID proponents bolster their claims: arguing that their opponents willfully undermine democracy with voter fraud; fostering solidarity, dividing “Us” from the fraudulent voting “Others”; cultivating racism; manipulating legislators with urgent warnings; and buttressing their arguments with anecdotes, biased sources, and demonstrable lies. By revealing the persuasive powers of such discursive techniques, my paper provides a qualitative, critical nuance to the quantitative studies that address voter fraud.</p><p>
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:PROQUEST/oai:pqdtoai.proquest.com:13861751 |
| Date | 25 April 2019 |
| Creators | Williams, Gregory T. |
| Publisher | Fielding Graduate University |
| Source Sets | ProQuest.com |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | thesis |
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