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ACLU Asks Federal Court to Expand Wisconsin Voter Access Opportunities

Case: Frank v. Walker: Fighting Voter Suppression in Wisconsin

March 26, 2015 3:37 pm

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 26, 2015

CONTACT: Inga Sarda-Sorensen, 212-284-7347, isarda-sorensen@aclu.org

MILWAUKEE – The American Civil Liberties Union today asked a federal district court to bolster access to the ballot for Wisconsin voters by permitting more types of acceptable identification for voting, and by allowing people who have difficulty obtaining identification to vote by affidavit.

The motion comes in response to a federal appeals court decision upholding the law, and seeks modifications to help ensure voter access to the polls. It asks that the limited list of acceptable identification be expanded to include IDs for veterans and students attending technical colleges, as well as out-of-state driver licenses.

Dale Ho, director of the ACLU’s Voting Rights Project, said:

“Thousands of Wisconsinites face barriers to the polls due to the limited forms of ID mandated under the state’s strict voter ID law. We’re asking the court to help lift these barriers by allowing a broader range of options.”

The ACLU, the ACLU of Wisconsin, the National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty, and Dechert LLP are co-counsel in this case, Frank v. Walker. The motion was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin.

More information is at: https://www.aclu.org/voting-rights/frank-v-walker-fighting-voter-suppression-wisconsin

Frank v. Walker: Fighting Voter Suppression in Wisconsin

Wisconsin’s voter ID law is one of the harshest in the country and requires voters to produce one of a few specified forms of photo identification in order to vote. This restriction imposes a substantial burden on the right to vote by requiring photo identification that many voters do not have, and that many voters cannot easily obtain, in violation of the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution. In addition, the Wisconsin voter ID law violates Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, which prohibits the use of voting practices that have a negative impact on racial and language minorities. The law has a disproportionate impact on black and Latino voters, who are twice as likely to lack photo ID accepted for voting in Wisconsin compared to white voters.

Source: American Civil Liberties Union

Previous press release about this case

Wisconsin Voter ID Law on Hold for April Election

March 23, 2015 2:14 pm

Next press release about this case

ACLU Comment on Wisconsin Voter Ballot Access Decision

October 19, 2015 1:30 pm

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