Now that the U.S. Supreme Court has spoken on the legality of photo identification requirements for voters, you can be sure there will be a wave of such mandates through the states.
Already, there has been talk about a similar measure in Colorado.
We hope that any such effort here will take a measured approach that includes long lead times for implementation and substantial help in obtaining ID for those who need it.
The issue, which seems to immediately inflame partisan sensibilities, returned to the political front burner with a Monday Supreme Court decision on an Indiana law.
The strict Indiana law requires voters to show a photo identification — in most cases it means a current driver’s license or passport — before casting ballots.
It sounds like common sense. After all, you need one to board a plane or cash a check.
But there are real concerns about disenfranchising some voters.
The requirement has been criticized by Democrats who believe it dissuades poor and elderly voters, who are less likely to have such identification and more likely to be Democrats. Republicans, by and large, believe it’s a way to police voter fraud, brushing off arguments of disenfranchisement.
The Supreme Court’s decision was a fractured one, but it concluded that those challenging the Indiana law didn’t prove the identification requirements were so onerous as to violate the Constitution.
Besides Indiana, six states now require voters to provide photo IDs: Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Michigan and South Dakota. Two dozen other states are considering similar measures.
In Colorado, voters can prove their identity with a copy of a current utility bill, a bank statement or a government check. A valid Medicare or Medicaid card also will do. Or a pilot’s license.
Of course, they also may present either a driver’s license, a military photo ID, a passport or government-issued photo ID in order to vote.
While we don’t necessarily have a problem with requiring a photo ID to vote, any such effort has to be carefully thought out.
There must be long lead times for implementation, and certainly it should not become a mandate before the general election in November. Voters need adequate time to understand any changes and obtain the necessary documentation.
Furthermore, there has to be significant support in place to help elderly people, for instance, in obtaining the underlying documents, such as a birth certificate, that they need to get a photo ID.
Casting a ballot is an important part of the democratic process that must be safeguarded against fraud. But the protections must be reasonable so as not to corrupt the very system they seek to protect.
