Voter ID

Today, 30 states require voters to present identification to vote in federal, state and local elections. Many Americans do not have the necessary identification that these laws require, and face barriers to voting as a result. Research shows that more than 21 million Americans do not have government-issued photo identification; a disproportionate number of these Americans are low-income, racial and ethnic minorities, and elderly. Voter ID laws have the potential to deny the right to vote to thousands of registered voters who do not have, and, in many instances, cannot obtain the limited identification states accept for voting. Many of these Americans cannot afford to pay for the required documents needed to secure a government-issued photo ID. As such, these laws impede access to the polls and are at odds with the fundamental right to vote. Learn more >>

11/08/2012
Voter Suppression

Who Really Won the Election? Democracy Did.

By Deborah J. Vagins, ACLU Washington Legislative Office at 4:00pm

On Tuesday, despite the massive hurdles put in front of voters since 2010 – citizens nonetheless, fought through voter suppression tactics, misinformation, long lines, then longer lies, and the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy to have their voices heard and votes count.

For the last two years, there was a wave of voter suppression laws passed in states. As the ACLU, has long argued many of the laws took different forms -- voter ID and citizenship requirements, limitations on early voting, restrictions on third-party voter registration, purging, and criminal disfranchisement laws -- but their impact and intent are the same:  a cynical attempt to push certain constituencies out of the electorate in advance of an election.  This is particularly true for voters of color, students, voters with disabilities and the elderly.

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12/28/2011
Voter ID

Government Steps Up to Block Voter Suppression in South Carolina

By Steve Gosset, ACLU at 11:50am

There were eight states this year that passed some version of a law requiring photo identification for all voters. South Carolina was one of them, but hopefully not for long.

The Department of Justice on Friday blocked South Carolina’s law, which it said would have disproportionately affected thousands of minority voters.

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11/08/2011
Voter ID

So You Think You Can Vote?

By Deborah J. Vagins, ACLU Washington Legislative Office & Georgeanne M. Usova, Washington Legislative Office at 10:35am

This Election Day, we are faced with a dramatic rollback of the right to vote.

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09/09/2011
Voter ID

Ohioans Rise Up to Stop Voter Suppression Bill

By Mike Brickner, ACLU of Ohio at 11:00am

Pundits, politicians, and publicists all agree: Ohio is crucial to any national election. And this year, Ohio is just one of many states that has had to grapple with legislators’ attempts to restrict voting rights. In 2011, state legislatures across the country considered, and ultimately passed, a range of voter suppression legislation, including photo ID and proof of citizenship requirements, cuts to early and absentee voting, and more.

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08/30/2012
Voter ID

ACLU Lens: Federal Court Blocks Texas Voter ID Law

By Vesna Jaksic, ACLU at 2:46pm

A federal court today struck Texas’s discriminatory voter ID law, which would have prevented many eligible citizens from exercising their fundamental right to vote. 

The ACLU had intervened in the case in order to represent individuals and organizations who would be negatively impacted, and protect the right to vote. Today’s decision by a three-judge Washington, D.C. panel comes at a time when the right to vote is under attack nationwide.

“By blocking this law, the court reaffirmed the right of all people in this country to participate in our democracy,” said Nancy Abudu, senior staff attorney with the ACLU Voting Rights Project, which intervened in the case along with the ACLU of Texas.

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06/04/2012
Voter Suppression

Wisconsin’s Recall Election: State Law Makes Voting An Uphill Battle for Young Voters

By Demelza Baer, Washington Legislative Office at 4:16pm

You remember Wisconsin, right? It’s the place where last year a battle over proposed budget cuts – that would reduce employee benefits and collective bargaining rights – prompted the prolonged protests of thousands of people in the state’s capital, as well as the temporary self-exile of state senators to Illinois to delay a vote on the budget measure. Fiercely-held opinions on both sides of the issues prompted a gubernatorial recall petition drive.

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03/12/2012
Voter ID

Standing up for Voting Rights Again: DOJ Objects to Texas' Discriminatory Voter ID Law

By Katie O'Connor, Voting Rights Project at 2:04pm

The Justice Department has objected to Texas' proposed voter ID law, stopping the law before it goes into effect.

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12/14/2011
Voter ID

Protecting the Right to Vote: A Moral Imperative

By Deborah J. Vagins, ACLU Washington Legislative Office at 12:57pm

In response to voter suppression laws passed across the country, Attorney General Eric Holder said he is committed to protecting all Americans’ right to vote.

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07/29/2011
Voter ID

Every Vote Matters

By Laura W. Murphy, Director, ACLU Washington Legislative Office at 4:57pm

I grew up in a family that was always extremely engaged in politics. My mother ran for political office three times and from an early age instilled in me the importance of exercising our most cherished fundamental right: the right to vote. At age 70, my mother stopped driving and did not have government-issued photo identification until she died at age 84, although she still was able to vote in every election. Over the last few months, however, state legislatures have passed voter identification laws that would prevent senior citizens like my mother from expressing her political voice at the polls.

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06/14/2011
Voter ID

Lions and Tigers and Fraud, Oh My! Secretary of State Kris Kobach Is at It Again

By Jon Sherman, Voting Rights Project & Katie O'Connor, Voting Rights Project at 2:09pm

In a recent column in the Wall Street Journal, Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach takes a victory lap trumpeting the passage of his voter ID law. He writes: "You can't cash a check, board a plane, or even buy full-strength Sudafed over the counter without [a photo ID]. That's why it's not unreasonable to require one in order to protect our most important privilege of citizenship." Voting, however, is not a privilege; it is a fundamental right guaranteed by more constitutional amendments than any other right we have. Cashing a check, getting on an airplane, and buying a nasal decongestant are not similarly enshrined in the U.S. Constitution.

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