S-4155-119
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration.
Sponsored by Jon Husted (R-OH)
What it does
This bill would amend the Help America Vote Act to require voters to show a valid photo ID to vote in person in federal elections, or submit a copy of photo ID (or last four Social Security digits plus an affidavit) with mail ballots. Voters without ID could cast a provisional ballot and later provide ID or a religious-objection affidavit within three days. States would be required to provide free public access to copying devices for ID and to notify voter registration applicants of the ID requirement.
Who benefits
Supporters of stricter voter verification, including groups advocating for uniform national election security standards; states with existing strict photo ID laws that would gain federal reinforcement; companies and vendors that may supply ID-copying equipment to government buildings.
Who is hurt
Voters lacking a driver's license, passport, military ID, or Tribal ID — disproportionately including elderly voters, low-income voters, people with disabilities, some minority voters, and rural residents without easy DMV access; mail voters who lack ID or a Social Security number readily at hand; state and local election officials who would bear new administrative and compliance costs; states with same-day registration or existing non-photo-ID verification systems that would need to overhaul procedures.
Supporters argue
Supporters argue that photo ID requirements are a common-sense safeguard that most Americans already support and that many other democracies require, and that establishing a uniform national standard would increase public confidence in federal election integrity. They contend the bill includes accommodations — provisional ballots, affidavits for religious objectors, and free access to copying devices — that minimize burdens on voters who lack ID.
Opponents argue
Opponents argue that photo ID mandates disproportionately burden elderly, low-income, disabled, and rural voters who are statistically less likely to possess qualifying ID, potentially suppressing turnout among these groups. They contend that voter impersonation fraud is exceedingly rare according to multiple studies, and that a federal mandate would override state election administration choices, including states that currently allow alternative verification methods.