With several states challenging the legality of voter ID laws, there’s much confusion about what IDs are accepted, and when early voting can take place.
The 2016 Presidential election is less than 40 days away, and potential voters and flocking to their local DMV’s and Social Security offices to ensure they have the proper identification needed to vote.
The Nation featured a story about how Wisconsin is Systematically Failing Voters:
Zack Moore, a 34-year-old African-American man, moved from Chicago to Madison last year. He worked at a car wash and then a landscaping job before breaking his leg and becoming unemployed. After staying with his brother, he’s now homeless and sleeping on the streets of Madison.
On September 22, he went to the DMV to get a photo ID for voting, as required byWisconsin’s strict voter-ID law. He brought his Illinois photo ID, Social Security card, and a pay stub for proof of residence. But he didn’t have a copy of his birth certificate, which had been misplaced by his sister in Illinois, so the DMV wouldn’t give him an ID for voting. “I’m trying to get a Wisconsin ID so I can vote,” Moore told the DMV. “I don’t have my birth certificate, but I got everything else.”
Under Wisconsin law, the DMV should’ve given Moore a credential he could use for voting within 6 business days. But that never happened. They told him to “drive down there [to Illinois] and get [a birth certificate] and come back.” That would cost Moore money he didn’t have. If he entered what the state calls the ID Petition Process (IDPP), it would take 6-8 weeks for him to get a voter-ID and he most likely wouldn’t be able to vote by Election Day.
“I’m disappointed in the government,” Moore said after leaving the DMV. “I guess they’re trying to keep people from voting.”
For more on this story, visit The Nation.
