On June 23, 2012, Pennsylvania House Republican Leader Mike Turzai declared in a closed-room GOP meeting, “Voter ID, which is going to allow Governor Romney to win the state of Pennsylvania—Done.” In a rare moment of candor, Turzai revealed the true motivations behind an orchestrated effort to manipulate elections for political purposes: voter identification laws passed by Republican state legislatures throughout the nation would disproportionately affect the ability of Democrats to vote. Normally, I would brush aside this sort of politicking as yet another defect in an otherwise well-functioning political system. However, this particular example of corruption crosses an ethical boundary and threatens to fundamentally undermine our democracy.

As advertised, Voter ID laws protect elections from voter fraud by mandating, among other things, necessary photo identification. Although this requirement sounds harmless, 21 million people–nearly 11 percent of this nation–do not have acceptable forms of photo verification. In Pennsylvania alone, 760,000 registered voters lack verification, according to analysis by the Philadelphia Inquirer. The process for acquiring proper documentation is often arduous and has discouraged people from voting.

Contrary to the ever-popular Republican claims of rampant voter fraud, misconduct occurred at a rate of only 0.0009% and 0.00004% in the 2004 gubernatorial races of Wisconsin and Ohio, respectively. Moreover, a number of these cases actually involve absentee ballot fraud—an issue not addressed by these new laws. 34 Republican-controlled state legislatures have recently introduced these voter ID laws; in 30 states, they passed. In addition to poorly addressing a nonexistent problem for political gain, the laws hurt the poor, elderly, and disabled in greatest numbers.

Republicans have also suggested that requiring a photo ID helps to show a certain degree of patriotic enthusiasm. In effect, citizens would have to pass this quasi-test to prove themselves worthy to vote. First of all, if the government wishes to screen voters, it must screen all voters, not only those who currently lack proper identification. To be clear, this group of people does not frequently drive or travel—often because they simply cannot afford to–and consequently does not possess driver’s licenses or passports.

But more importantly, the notion of screening registered, eligible voters screams of anti-democracy—a read of John Locke’s most basic works make this principle evident. The authority of a government is purely derived from the consent of every citizen living under it, and we should protest attempts to deny the citizenry of its sacred right to vote.

Just about 50 years ago, Civil Rights advocates across the country including Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, and Jesse Jackson led movements to pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Voting Rights Act of 1965. From that point on, America believed it had rooted out outright disenfranchisement. Unfortunately, Voter ID laws suggest disenfranchisement is not yet behind us. While self-interested corporations may flood politics with money, we betray an even more basic American value when we fundamentally hack at democracy’s foundation: the right for every willing and able citizen to vote.