Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder was disingenuous — to put it nicely — when he signed a bill last week that eliminates straight-ticket voting in his state. He then piously called on the Legislature to allow any voter who wants an absentee ballot to get one, to “help alleviate long lines at the ballot box.” The governor knows that will not happen. 

The only way it could have happened is if Mr. Snyder had vowed to veto the bill unless lawmakers passed no-reason absentee voting at the same time, which they had previously agreed to do. There are arguments to be made against straight-ticket voting, a relic of an era when political party bosses directed voters, many of whom were illiterate, where to make their mark. But Michigan makes it harder than almost any other state to vote. 

There is no early voting, as in Ohio and most other states. Michigan doesn’t make it easy to vote absentee. Voters who request an absentee ballot must be over age 60, in jail, or planning to be out of town on Election Day. Worse, there are not nearly enough voting booths in many urban neighborhoods; lines at polling places are sure to get longer now. 

Originally, the bill abolishing straight-ticket voting was paired with another measure that would have allowed any Michigan voter to get an absentee ballot, for any reason. The state House passed both bills.

But leaders of the Republican-controlled Senate cynically killed the absentee-ballot bill. They have made clear that they oppose any legislation that would make it easier for Michiganians to vote, because they think that the more people who vote, the more Democrats are likely to win. 

They eliminated straight-ticket voting for a similar reason: not because it was antiquated, but because more Democrats vote a straight ticket. Worse, they attached a token spending measure to the bill; that constitutional trick will prevent citizens from overturning the law by referendum — as Michigan voters, who want the straight-ticket option, have done twice before. 

 Cynically manipulating the voting process for partisan advantage is neither election reform nor good government. Those who are responsible for this travesty, including Governor Snyder, should be ashamed.

First Published January 10, 2016, 5:00 a.m.