Voter ID legislation
| “ | Voter ID, which is gonna allow Governor Romney to win the state of Pennsylvania: done! | ” |
| —Pennsylvania House Majority Leader Mike Turzai (R) in June 2012 | ||
Voter ID legislation in some states requires voters wishing to cast a ballot at the polls (and in some cases, via absentee ballot) to present approved identification. Voters without identification are generally allowed to cast a provisional ballot, which may be counted only if the voter takes additional steps after the ballot is cast, such as providing identification or signing an affidavit.
Voter ID proponents argue that requiring voters to present identification will reduce voter fraud. Opponents suggest that in-person impersonation fraud, the kind of fraud typical voter ID laws are able to prevent, is very rare, and they argue that voter ID requirements can have a disparate impact on minority voters, college students, and the elderly.
Although Democratic Party leadership opposes voter ID legislation, both Republican and Democrat voters support it.[1]
Republican vs. Democrat attitudes
According to a study conducted by Professor John V. Kane of New York University, published in Public Opinion Quarterly, while Republican voters strongly care about voter fraud and stopping it through voter ID laws, Democrat voters care more strongly about whether or not their party will benefit from such legislation when deciding to enact voter ID.[2]
See also
References
- ↑ Swoyer, Alex (May 28, 2017). More Democrats see voter fraud as a problem and ID laws as a solution. The Washington Times. Retrieved May 28, 2017.
- ↑ Dinan, Stephen (December 26, 2017). Republicans care about voter fraud; Democrats want to come out ahead, says study. The Washington Times. Retrieved December 26, 2017.
