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Voter-Identification Requirements and the Learning Curve

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 January 2009

Timothy Vercellotti  and
David Andersen
Timothy Vercellotti
Affiliation:
Western New England College
David Andersen
Affiliation:
Rutgers University
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Extract

Debates over whether to require voters to provide proof of identity at the polls, and just how that can be accomplished, are taking place in legislative chambers and courtrooms across the nation. At the heart of these debates is the balancing act of ballot security versus access to voting. Opponents of voter-identification requirements argue that they place a disproportionate burden on ethnic and racial minorities, the poor, the less educated, the very young, and the very old. Supporters of identification requirements argue the standards are no higher than those required for boarding a plane or cashing a check, and the requirements are needed to prevent voter fraud.

Type
Symposium
Information
PS: Political Science & Politics , Volume 42 , Issue 1 , January 2009 , pp. 117 - 120
Copyright
Copyright © American Political Science Association 2009

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