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The Disproportionate Impact of Voter-ID Requirements onthe Electorate—New Evidence from Indiana

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 January 2009

Matt A. Barreto
Affiliation:
University of Washington
Stephen A. Nuño
Affiliation:
Northern Arizona University
Gabriel R. Sanchez
Affiliation:
University of New Mexico
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Extract

On January 8, 2008, the United States Supreme Court heard argumentsin Crawford v. Marion County Election Board, a caserelated to the discriminatory effects of voter-identification lawsin the state of Indiana. Indiana has one of the most stringentvoting requirements in the nation, as voters are required to presentan up-to-date photo identification issued by the federal or stategovernment in order to cast a ballot. Plaintiffs argued that theIndiana requirements prevent significant and unequal obstacles tothe right to vote. The state argued that Indiana had the right toenforce strict requirements to prevent fraud and uphold confidencein the electoral process. Similar laws have also been proposed inmany other states, typically related to charges of vote fraud, andoften times tied into the divisive debate regarding undocumentedimmigrants or African American felons. Therefore the recent decisionof the Court has tremendous implications to the future ofphoto-identification laws across the United States.

Information

Type
Symposium
Copyright
Copyright © American Political Science Association 2009
Figure 0

Table 1. Access to Valid Photo Identification among Citizen Adult Population

Figure 1

Table 2. Access to Valid Photo Identification among Registered Voters in Indiana

Figure 2

Table 3. Partisan Implications of Access to Valid Photo Identification

Figure 3

Figure 1. Party Identification by Access to Voter among ID Indiana Registered Voters, 2007

Figure 4

Table 4. Percent with Driver's License by County and Demographic Characteristics