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Stevens, J., dissenting
light of Mills, the fact that campaign-free zones are "traditional" tends to undermine, rather than to support, the validity of the Tennessee statute. In short, we should scrutinize the Tennessee statute for what it is—a police power regulation that also silences a substantial amount of protected political expression.
In my opinion, the presence of campaign workers outside a polling place is, in most situations, a minor nuisance. But we have long recognized that " 'the fact that society may find speech offensive is not a sufficient reason for suppressing it.' " Hustler Magazine, Inc. v. Falwell, 485 U. S. 46, 55 (1988) (citation omitted). Although we often pay homage to the electoral process, we must be careful not to confuse sanctity with silence. The hubbub of campaign workers outside a polling place may be a nuisance, but it is also the sound of a vibrant democracy.
In silencing that sound, Tennessee "trenches upon an area in which the importance of First Amendment protections is 'at its zenith.' " Meyer v. Grant, 486 U. S. 414, 425 (1988) (citation omitted). For that reason, Tennessee must shoulder the burden of demonstrating that its restrictions on political speech are no broader than necessary to protect orderly access to the polls. It has not done so.
I therefore respectfully dissent.
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