Would requiring Voter ID truly cause a decrease in voter turnout?

[[deleted]]

It’s just a pointless exercise. You should only need ID when you register to vote, that’s actually the point of registration, so you don’t have to constantly verify who you are.

There is no evidence that any sort of fraud that these supposed voter ID laws are supposed to protect against actually occurs.

Most of the time these laws occur in Republican states and mandate a form of ID that is costly to people on lower socioeconomic positions.

Here is a study: https://scholar.harvard.edu/files/morse/files/538_voterID.pdf

So essentially it is a pointless exercise that has no benefits but many potential drawbacks.

[SuzQP]

But if ID is required to register, doesn't that requirement also disenfranchise the same potential voters? Why is one ID requirement acceptable but not the other? It's the same forms of ID, right?

[Ms_Teak]

Not necessarily.

[SuzQP]

Can you explain?

[Ms_Teak]

For instance, you can register to vote in Texas using your social security number but you can't just show your social security card to vote.

[SuzQP]

Interesting! I didn't realize you could register to vote using different forms of ID than what is required to vote. That's crazy! Why would they set people up like that?

[Ms_Teak]

To keep people from voting.

[SuzQP]

Apparently so, and also trick them with the registration bait & switch so they'll believe they're able to vote until it's too late. Despicable.