Tornado Alley (PROG)

[DesertDrifter]

I believe the repubs are for voter ID for citizens to vote— dems appear to be against it

That is because republicans prefer to restrict minority voting. Remember the reservation Sioux in South Dakota that live where there are no physical addresses so were denied the vote?

Minorities are disproportionally impacted by voter ID laws.
Minority voters are more likely to lack a necessary voter ID than those who are in the majority. Up to 25% of African-Americans in the United States who are of voting age lack the government-issued identification they need to vote. The same can be said for just 8% of people from Caucasian descent.

Considering the fact that many states exclude forms of identification in a discriminatory manner, the result tends to be a reduction in the voice of the minority in each election. Texas allows a concealed weapon permit for voting, but it will not accept a student ID card. North Carolina prohibited public assistance identification and state employee ID cards, which were disproportionally held by African-American voters until the laws were struck down. Even Wisconsin permitted an active-duty ID, but not one from the VA.

Voter ID laws are enforced in discriminatory ways as well.
Research from MIT and Caltech found that minority voters are questioned more frequently about their voter ID than white voters, even if the documentation they present is accurate and legal. The University of California at San Diego corroborated this research by analyzing certified votes across all states after the implementation of voter laws in several elections.

Their findings are clear. “Strict photo identification laws have a differentially negative impact on the turnout of Hispanics, Blacks, and mixed-race Americans in primaries and general elections,” was the conclusion of the research.

In-person fraud cases are exceptionally rare at the ballot box.
There are very few cases where someone misrepresents who they are when reporting to their local precinct to vote. Since 2000, there have only been 31 credible allegations of voter impersonation, which is the type of fraud that identification laws work to prevent. That number comes from a total of more than 1 billion total votes that were cast.

Many of the identified instances of “voter fraud” that ID law proponents discuss are honest mistakes more than an active attempt to change an election. Even these mistakes are infrequent. One of the most common problems that an election board faces is a failure by an individual to de-register as a voter when they move somewhere else.

Voter ID laws come with a high price tag for implementation.
The states which actively enforce their voter ID laws are spending millions of dollars to ensure that there is integrity with their elective processes. Indiana spent over $10 million between 2007-2010 to produce free identification cards that were suitable for their voter ID laws. Texas spent over $2 million on educational programs and outreach efforts to voters after passing their laws. Considering the actual fraud and its expense to correct is minimal, the price of a voter ID law is very high compared to the results which are possible from its presence.

It provides an ongoing cost that people or governments must continue to pay.
When you obtain a voter ID card, then it is valid only when your information does not change. Once you move to a different address, then there is a requirement to update the information on your identification. Many jurisdictions give you 30 days to take care of this issue. Failing to do so can limit your access to voting and other ID benefits.

These cards will eventually wear out over time, even if there is no expiration date given to them. The pictures can become dated. The ID could even be lost or stolen, which could increase the potential for identity theft.

There must be a reliable delivery system for ID cards.
When there is a voter ID law in place, then the election authority must have a reliable system of delivery for the necessary identification materials. When there are poor distribution methods or policies in place, then it effectively excludes people from voting even if they paid for their identification according to the policy. Although this ID can be an effective form of identification for someone who doesn’t have a physical address, it may not be useful if there is not an instant delivery system in place to use.