Outside Publication

A Common-Sense Voter Identification Proposal, Texas Review of Law & Politics, Vol. 22 No. 1

2017

This article explores states’ enactments of voter identification laws and recent state and federal decisions regarding the constitutionality of such laws. As a safety net for those voters who cannot procure photo IDs through “reasonable efforts,” this article proposes that states mail to all registered voters a non-photo ID card that can be used to prove identity when voting. The article also examines the reasoning of a Southern District of Texas district court that enjoined enforcement of a Texas law similar to this article’s proposal and predicts the court’s decision will be reversed by the Fifth Circuit (Veasey v. Abbott).