By Don Palmer
The use of photo identification to confirm the identity of voters serves an essential election security function in America’s polling places and boosts citizens’ confidence in the voting process.
In perhaps their most prevalent means of attack, opponents of laws requiring photo ID greatly exaggerate the number of voters without a valid ID. In legislative, litigation, and public relations battles, opponents use wildly inflated numbers in an attempt both to portray these laws as burdensome and to gain partisan electoral advantage.
They cite a highly inflated number of voters who do not possess a driver’s license as the universal number of those who are not able to vote, even though, under all state photo ID laws, various other forms of ID, such as federal and state government IDs, U.S. passports, tribal IDs, or even employer-issued or university student IDs, are also acceptable.
