Democrats see election laws as revival of poll tax and threat to democratic process

By Mike Lillis - 11/14/11 08:26 PM ET

A wave of state election laws poses the single greatest threat to democracy and civil rights in generations, a number of House Democratic leaders charged Monday.

The lawmakers said the reform laws — including new voter ID and registration requirements — are politically motivated efforts from Republicans to suppress voter turnout, particularly in minority communities that tend to vote Democratic. They compare the new mandates to the poll taxes adopted by Southern states to discourage African-Americans from voting after the Civil War.

[b]“We know that voter suppression has been taking place, is [taking] place and is planned [to affect the next election],â€