I've been hearing a lot about this, but I don't understand it. I'm not a fan of the laws, but what is it about them that provide an additional disadvantage to democratic and/or poor and/or non-white voters? Can someone 'splain?

(I'm perfectly happy to be outraged, I'm just not sure yet what my reasons are.)

This bit, pups, I think:

That law, one of the toughest in the nation, requires that voters produce a state-issued ID card with their photograph every time they show up at their precinct polling place to vote. This is not a problem for the vast majority of voters who have a driver's license. It is a problem for unknown numbers of people who do not drive - including the elderly, the disabled or the poor.

They must somehow transport themselves to a state licensing station to obtain an official state photo ID, and possibly make another trip to the state capital to pay for a certified copy of their birth certificate. For some, that means paying for public transportation, which is not available in many rural counties.

This California DMV page shows the acceptable documentation for an ID, which, as gaspode's quote points out, may not be something someone has on hand.

This Illinois page (picked a state at random) looks like it requires proof of address, which might be difficult for someone homeless (whether out on the street or just moving from house to house).

Also, it'll be a hell of a lot easier for poll workers to turn away voters who are trying to use some ID other than a driver's license -- either from ignorance or malice, the poll workers can now decide what counts as a "valid" ID and start imposing stricter standards on people whose IDs don't "look right."

You could swap out Voter ID in this picture for "Secure Flight," too.

This country's getting nastier by the day.

Also, your ID has to be current, which is whole 'nother level of BS.

And why are they worrying about voter ID fraud instead of Diebold fraud?

Here's an interesting article I just found on Georgia's Voter ID law getting overturned.

NPR said it was pretty completely a Republican push. (There are way more Democrats without governement ID.)

Here's an article that talks a little about Wednesday's upholding of the Indiana Voter ID law.

It's an issue I'm very interested in. I'm already upset at the number of African American guys who can't vote because they have a felony. This is a huge chunk of the population disenfranchised.

Ah, I get it now. Thanks.

Ugh. Blucky.

I get it too. I am NOT a Republican. But... Come on! If you want to vote, I don't think asking you to produce a standard ID is too much to ask.

How's about this? Set up a picture-taking station at each polling place on Election Day. Anyone who doesn't have a valid picture ID, take their freakin' picture, give them the picture ID and be done with it.

After X amount of election cycles (maybe 4 years?) if you don't have one of those IDs or another valid picture ID such as a drivers license, you don't vote.

For people who truly can't get out to get one of those IDs, they're probably going to have the same problem getting to the polling place anyway.

For people who truly can't get out to get one of those IDs, they're probably going to have the same problem getting to the polling place anyway.

In my old town, to get a state ID I had to get a ride to the DMV outside of town, off the interstate. No public transit went there; it wasn't even walking distance from a public transit drop-off. In fact, because it was off the interstate, where pedestrians are barred, it was illegal to walk there.

I had to get time off during business hours, get a friend who had the same hours off and a car, and spend a couple of hours waiting. I was lucky to have a friend with a car and an understanding boss.

My polling place, by contrast, was the local school. Easy to get there.

The sole reason I needed a new state ID? To vote.

Of course, there's the separate issue that state IDs usually cost something, so requiring a specific form of ID is an unofficial polling tax. I think I paid 20 bucks for that vote ID.

I agree that asking for some proof of identity to prevent voter fraud seems reasonable, but requiring a specific form of ID is, at the least, problematic.

But the fundamental principle of our government is not "IDs for all!", it's "Everyone gets a vote." Ensuring that people can vote is a (much) higher priority than making sure they can get an ID.

I think I paid 20 bucks for that vote ID.

I thought of that when I was writing my post. I don't have the answers. Maybe the state agency that runs elections should also provide a free picture ID to anyone who does not have a drivers license that requests it. Hell, provide a mobile service that will come to the person's home.

hm. on the one hand I agree with Doohickie; that plus this feels slimily like another Republican effort to game the voting process.

on the other hand I am also a car-free individual, and it is a BITCH to deal with the bureaucrasy in this country when you must haul yourself to several different agencies just to get a damn permit to dig up your own yard, let alone get official documents.

*sigh* if the Dems are that concerned about this affecting the election, then rather than howl and screech and point fingers, it's their responsibility to figure out a way to photo ID their constituents. Game the goddamn system right back, plain and simple.

we file our taxes online these days... the solutions to mobility issues are probably there if people bother to do something beyond create media panics about it.

don't mind me, I'm so sick of the politicians and the media in this country browbeating and breastbeating and O WOE IS ME about various issues without offering workable solutions that I say bah humbug.

You've also got the issue of: If we instate what's basically a mandatory ID system, then what new things will spring up surrounding those IDs? What other agencies are going to start requiring us to show those IDs? What information are state and federal governments going to require be on those IDs, and how will they be used to track what we do?

Also: What low wage job gives you most of the day off to go get your state ID? Public transport is not as fast as a private car. The most accessible DMV will also be the busiest. The one in downtown Milwaukee used to make you STAND in line (I don't know if this is still true); the suburban DMVs let you take a number and sit down.

I used to be a poll judge.

I think everyone should have an id. There is nothing preventing someone from claiming they are me when they go vote except the memory of whatever old lady is manning the polls who won't remember me from last time.

The real answer for the elderly, etc is for someone to come up with an easier way for them to have an ID. And the truth is there are lots of things you need an ID for, not just voting, so it ought to be made easier for folks to get them.

That cartoon captures the spirit of these "Voter ID" laws perfectly. Ugh.

So many people do not have "valid" ID. It's hard to imagine when you're a middle class person with a driver's license, but it's really really common. At any given time, probably half of my foster kid's friends (non-white, urban, aged 18 to 23) don't have a valid ID because they lost it, their wallet was stolen, it's expired, they never had one, they don't have the paperwork to prove who they are, whatever. Most don't have the skills or initiative to successfully navigate the bureaucracy. The requirement heavily screens out the entire group.

At the same time, there is zero evidence of voter fraud by which someone goes into a polling place and signs on the line for a person that is not them. With zero evidence of a problem, the requirement *in practice* takes away the ability of these kids to vote.

This ruling 6-3 makes me really really sad.