On April 1, Wisconsin voters will have the opportunity to enshrine a voter ID measure into the state’s constitution.
Voters will be asked whether the state’s founding document should be amended to require voters “present valid photographic identification verifying their identity in order to vote in any election,” with this requirement being “subject to exceptions which may be established by law.” In a recent poll among registered Wisconsin voters conducted by The Marquette Law School, 73 percent of respondents said they support the proposed voter ID amendment. In addition, more recent national polls have found that at least 80 percent of Americans support voter ID.
But despite voter ID policy popularity both statewide and nationally, Democrats are fighting the referendum soon to appear on the Wisconsin ballot.
The ballot proposal was approved by the Republican-led Assembly “with no support from Democrats,” CBS News reported in January. While there are presently no legal challenges to the current voter ID laws already in place in the state, “Democrats said photo ID requirements are often enforced unfairly, making it more difficult for people of color, the disabled and poor people to vote,” according to the outlet. They also “argued that lawmakers should focus instead on other issues such as gun control, clean water, affordable housing, and expanding access to child care.”
Multiple left-leaning voter activist groups have also come out against the proposal. Souls To The Polls Wisconsin, a purportedly “left-of-center” get out the vote group, called the referendum “harmful” in a social media post last month.
“This newest amendment proposal would enshrine Wisconsin’s strict voter ID law in the state constitution–disenfranchising thousands of eligible voters and limiting the court’s ability to protect our voting rights,” the post reads.
The executive director of Wisconsin Democracy Campaign (WDC), Nick Ramos, similarly suggested to a local NBC affiliate that the referendum would “make it harder for people to vote.” (According to conservative watchdog InfluenceWatch, WDC has a history of “target[ting] the financial supporters of Republican and conservative policy leaders” and pursues policy goals “decidedly left-of-center.”)
In addition, the Wisconsin chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), a “nearly 100-year-old left-leaning activism organization,” according to InfluenceWatch, issued a statement in February urging voters to vote “no” on the measure, arguing that voter ID laws “disenfranchise” voters. The ACLU of Wisconsin Union along with more than 20 other organizations also signed onto a joint letter opposing the measure last month. WDC and Souls to the Polls Wisconsin are also among the signers.
Keep reading
You must be logged in to post a comment.