The U.S. appeals court in Chicago directed a district court to consider claims from people who encounter high hurdles in obtaining the photo ID needed to vote in Wisconsin.
The appeals court panel, in the April 12 order, wrote, “Plaintiffs contend that high hurdles for some persons eligible to vote entitle those particular persons to relief. Plaintiffs’ approach is potentially sound if even a single person eligible to vote is unable to get acceptable photo ID with reasonable effort. The right to vote is personal and is not defeated by the fact that 99 percent of other people can secure the necessary credentials easily. Plaintiffs now accept the propriety of requiring photo ID from persons who already have or can get it with reasonable effort, while endeavoring to protect the voting rights of those who encounter high hurdles.”
The ruling from a panel of three judges, all Republican appointments, followed oral arguments in the case challenging the state’s voter photo ID law brought by the American Civil Liberties Union to the he U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.
“The court ruled that eligible voters facing difficulty obtaining ID have the right to challenge Wisconsin’s strict voter ID law,” stated Sean Young, an attorney with the ACLU’s Voting Rights Project.
Young continued, “This ruling gives them the chance to go back to the lower court to make their case. This is a victory for the voters of Wisconsin.”
The panel did not overturn the state’s voter ID law, enacted by a GOP-majority Legislature and signed by Gov. Scott Walker in 2011. Wisconsin’s measure was one of a number advanced by Republican lawmakers across the country and modeled after draft legislation pushed by the conservative American Legislative Exchange Council.
Implementation of the law was delayed due to legal challenges at the state and federal levels. Both the Wisconsin Supreme Court and the federal appeals court upheld the law in separate rulings in 2014.
Opponents continued to challenge the law.
The court’s order April 12 allows the challenge to continue at the district court level and could clear the way for some voters to cast ballots without the mandated photo ID.
A senior attorney with the ACLU of Wisconsin, Karyn Rotker, said, “The Appeals Court determined that just because it may be easy for most people to get ID, the state can't take voting rights away from people who have real difficulties getting ID.”
The next balloting will be in August, when the state holds its legislative primaries. Then the general election is Nov. 8.
On the Web
Click here for the ruling.
Find more about the case, Frank v. Walker, here.
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