Virginia Republicans are moving forward with plans to tighten voter ID laws
for the second time in two years.
The state Senate passed legislation Tuesday (February 5) that would
require voters to show photo identification at the polls. Lieutenant Governor
Bill Bolling, a Republican, cast the tie-breaking vote in the split-controlled
chamber.
Also this week, both chambers passed bills that would shorten the list of
acceptable identification for voters, eliminating options to show a current
utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck or a Social Security
card.
In Virginia and in other states, Republicans have picked up where they
left off last year on efforts to tighten voting requirements -- changes
critics describe as bald-faced attempts to suppress turnout and disenfranchise
poor and minority voters who are more likely to vote for Democrats. As
Stateline has reported, as many as 12 states are weighing such measures this
year, making it likely more states will have stricter requirements in 2014
than there were in 2012. That comes as the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to hear
arguments on a pair of cases.
Republicans say the changes are necessary to ensure the integrity of
elections, even though there is no proof of widespread fraud at the polls.
If passed and signed by the governor, the Virginia measures would go into
effect in 2014.
Although Bolling, as a tie-breaking vote, has keyed the overhaul effort,
he has cautioned legislators against pursuing further changes in the coming
years.
"I think it is a reasonable effort to tighten voter identification
requirements and assure greater integrity in the voting process," he said in a
statement Monday. "However, we just changed Virginia's voter ID requirements
in 2012, and we cannot change these requirements every year. I am concerned
that this would create unnecessary confusion among voters about what forms of
ID are required at the polls."
Last year, the state spent some $2 million educating voters on new
identification rules signed into law by Governor Bob McDonnell. That law
required voters to present certain forms of identification at the polls. Those
without identification could still cast provisional ballots.
