How will Voter ID affect future elections?

Voting rights for students, the elderly, and the poor are threatened by the voter ID bill currently making its way through Wisconsin’s legislature, according to Democratic State Senator Chris Larson and State Representative Jon Richards. Substantial costs to the state and an additional burden on city clerks were also cited by the legislators.

At issue is Senate Bill 6, which was moved to the third reading awaiting final vote while the 14 Democratic Senators were in Illinois. The bill was the subject of a town hall forum held April 18 at UW-Milwaukee.

Under current law, anyone who is a U.S. citizen, at least 18 years old and has resided in a ward or election district for at least ten days before an election may vote. Voter registration can occur at the polling place, typically with proof of residence (a signed lease or utility bill with current address) or with a personal voucher from another resident in the same voting ward.

SB6 and its companion bill in the Assembly would continue same-day registration with current proof of residence, but additionally require a picture ID. Acceptable forms of ID under the current version of the bill are a Wisconsin driver’s license, a DOT-issued ID card, military ID, or a U.S. Passport.

The bill provides measures exempting voters who have had their licenses taken by law enforcement, are victims of sexual or physical abuse, can’t afford a state ID card or do not want their picture taken due to religious beliefs.

Richards said that the bill would also prevent many college students from voting because no high school or college ID cards would be accepted at the polls.

“One reason we’re here at UWM tonight is because it’s very common for college students to move at least once a year, sometimes a couple times a year. Here in the city, it’s very common for people to move several times a year,” he said, following the event.

“[And] that ID that you’re pulling out, with your old address, will work fine if you just need your name and your picture, but it won’t work fine if you’re trying to vote under this bill. That’s a very big difference.”

Richards said that approximately 180,000 senior citizens in Wisconsin do not have government-issued photo ID cards, that nearly half of African Americans and Hispanics in Wisconsin do not have driver’s licenses, and that more than 80 percent of college students do not have driver’s licenses that match their campus addresses.

Richards and Larson spoke to a crowd of about 50 in UW-Milwaukee’s Wisconsin Room at Monday’s forum. State Representative Sandra Pasch was originally scheduled for the event but was unable to attend due to a religious holiday.

Both legislators emphasized the small number of voter fraud cases uncovered by a recent federal investigation, but seemed resigned to the bill eventually becoming law.

“It’s most likely going to end up going through,” said Larson, “So a lot of what we’re talking about is. . .it’s not a matter of debating it. . .but being knowledgeable about what’s going to be happening.”

Larson also said that the state Government Accountability Board estimated the cost of the bill at $40 million. That figure includes the cost of educating election workers and the public about procedural changes as well as the cost to the DOT in providing free identification cards to those who cannot afford them, which would be necessary for the bill to pass constitutional muster.

Sean Lennon, a teacher at MPS’s Alliance School, said the bill would disenfranchise many young voters in Milwaukee.

“Students in Milwaukee tend to get their driver’s license later. It’s not the 16 years of age that it is in the suburban and rural districts,” said Lennon. “If they need a driver’s license in order to vote, that’s going to be a serious problem. A lot of students are going to be disenfranchised from going out and voting when they turn 18.”

Richards also said that the bill would not have prevented most of the fraudulent votes in recent years from being cast.

“There’s nothing on your driver’s license that says you’re a citizen, or that you’re not a felon,” he said.

Tempers flared toward the end of the evening as a 79-year-old man said that he’d never missed a chance to vote and that he felt disenfranchised when his vote was “nullified” by someone voting illegally. The man left before he could be identified.

“[The bill] would be the most restrictive law of its kind in the country,” said Richards. “Wisconsin shouldn’t go from the most open state to the most closed state for voting in a matter of six months.”

“If we’re going to have voter ID in this state, let’s at least be in the mainstream.”

What do you think — will a Voter ID law help eliminate fraud, or will it disenfranchise voters? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.