In recent weeks, Voter ID has become one of the hottest topics in Washington. The U.S. House of Representatives has passed multiple bills to ensure only eligible U.S. citizens vote in federal elections. President Donald Trump recently declared voter ID his #1 legislative priority. All eyes are now on the U.S. Senate to see if the Republican majority there can pass one of the House-passed bills for the president to sign into law.
Most Americans following this debate are probably wondering why there is a debate at all. Polls consistently show at least 80% of Americans — including most Democrats — support voter ID laws. That kind of bipartisan unity may be rare in American today. But it makes sense on this issue. Voter ID laws prevent fraud and ensure election integrity. In this era of collapsing public trust in our political institutions, national voter ID should be a no brainer.
We don’t want unscrupulous political campaigns stuffing ballot boxes with fake votes. And we don’t want anyone other than citizens casting ballots. What we want is to be able to trust that our elections are fair and the outcomes are legitimate.
The simplest answer to do that is to require voters to prove their citizenship when they register, and their identity when they show up to vote.
And yet, voter ID reform may die in the Senate.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) is adamantly opposed to voter ID. He announced that his party will vote against the House-passed bills, and even conduct a filibuster to prevent the Senate from voting on them. Liberals like Schumer have criticized voter ID laws in extremely harsh language. They say it’s racist — “Jim Crow 2.0.” They say it’s unconstitutional. They say it’s unfairly burdensome. They say it’s designed to suppress voter turnout.
But the evidence shows all four of these objections are misguided.
First of all, of course voter ID laws are not racist. Jim Crow laws were designed to prevent minority citizens from voting. Voter ID laws are designed to protect all Americans’ votes. That’s why polls show Black and Hispanic Americans support voter ID.
Nor would a federal voter ID law be unconstitutional. It’s true — and good — that election laws are generally left to the states. But Article I of the Constitution explicitly gives Congress the power to legislate on this issue when necessary:
“The Times, Places and Manner of holding Elections for Senators and Representatives, shall be prescribed in each State by the Legislature thereof; but the Congress may at any time by Law make or alter such Regulations”.
Critics say it’s wrong to demand ID from someone exercising a constitution right. But Americans present IDs to assert their rights all the time. Starting an advocacy group or getting a permit for a demonstration (1st amendment) buying a gun (2nd Amendment), asserting property rights (5th amendment), or filing a lawsuit (7th amendment) all require an ID of some kind.
Critics’ third concern is that voter ID is cripplingly burdensome. They say it’s unreasonable to expect voters to be able to show ID at the polls. California Governor Gavin Newsom, for instance, said on a podcast recently that he has no idea where his birth certificate is and so voter ID laws could prevent him from voting.
But this is silly. Presenting ID is a part of daily life, for people of every race, creed, and income bracket. People need ID to buy beer, rent a car, cash a check, board an airplane, join a gym, go to the doctor, or pick up medicine at the pharmacy. No one is burdened by carrying around their driver’s license.
Finally, liberals say voter ID laws will suppress voter turnout. Except, we know this isn’t true. Studies have looked at the evidence for years. States that have passed voter ID have routinely seen voter turnout increase. This makes sense, since citizens are more likely to participate in a process they trust.
Critics want Americans to believe that voter ID is a strange, scary new idea cooked up by partisan politicians. In truth, it’s already the norm in the U.S. and around the world. Thirty-six states already have voter ID laws on their books. Most countries in the world do too, including Canada, Mexico, all 12 countries in South America and all 47 in Europe. The real outliers here are the 16 U.S. states that don’t require voter ID.
That’s the real problem.
Many of those states — like California, Illinois, Minnesota, and New York — have large numbers of illegal immigrants, are controlled by liberals, and have declared themselves “sanctuaries” that won’t cooperate with federal immigration enforcement agencies. Lots of non-citizens, a partisan interest in non-citizen voting, and a comfort with lawlessness look to many Americans like a recipe for voter fraud.
Over President Biden’s four years in office, eight million illegal immigrants entered the United States. That’s roughly the population of Washington State. Especially in the wake of huge fraud scandals now unfolding in liberal states — many involving illegal migrants — now is a good time to ensure only citizens vote in our elections.
Counting the votes of only those who are legally allowed to vote is not intolerant; it’s democracy. After all, if an American happened to be vacationing in France or Italy on the day of one of their elections, no one would expect them to be able to vote. Citizens alone should determine election outcomes. Legal immigrants can certainly become citizens in time, and then vote, but not before.
That’s already the law. Voter ID simply makes sure that law is obeyed. Different states — and different bills before Congress — feature slightly different rules. Some require a photo ID while others only require some proof of identity. Some require voter ID only for in-person voting, and some require it for mail-in ballots too. Given the erosion of public trust — and Americans’ universal familiarity with carrying ID — stricter rules will only help without unduly burdening anyone.
The strongest refutation of the Left’s arguments against voter ID is the lived experience in the 36 states and dozens of countries that already have it. Voters turn out in large numbers. Democrats and Republicans both win some and lose some. In every election, it’s easy to vote and hard to cheat.
Nothing can make a voting system perfect. But voter ID does make it fair.
