In the latest flare up surrounding the voter ID law, the League of Women Voters of Wisconsin announced Thursday they are suing the state on the grounds that the new rule violates the state’s constitution.
The lawsuit, which lists Gov. Scott Walker and the Government Accountability Board as the defendants, will be brought before a Dane County court with the hope of invalidating the statute in time for elections around the state.
Andrea Kaminski, executive director for the League of Women Voters, said the issues presented by the voter ID law are particularly close to the organization, which contends voting rights are a core issue that should be guaranteed.
She said members have worked to oppose the law because they believe it makes it harder for eligible citizens to vote. Wisconsin’s constitution dictates state residency and a minimum age of 18 are the requirements to vote, rules the recently approved voter ID law effectively extends.
“The law is unconstitutional and unnecessary,” Kaminski said. “The state constitution does not authorize the Legislature to pass this law, and they were acting outside of the constitution.”
The language of the constitution is clear, she said, and the league aims to stop the ID portion of the law before the 2012 elections.
While supporters of the law have said it will eliminate instances of fraud in Wisconsin elections, Kaminski said her organization views it a measure to disenfranchise students, the elderly and disabled voters.
GAB spokesperson Reid Magney declined to comment on the pending litigation.
Walker has contended the voter ID requirements would deter citizens from attempting to impersonate others in state elections and this issue often goes undetected because there are no mechanisms in place for detection of voter fraud.
Proponents have also said presenting photo ID allows workers at the polls to determine if the voter is indeed who they say they are.
University of Wisconsin political science professor Charles Franklin said the argument driving the league’s lawsuit is that because the Wisconsin constitution specifically mentions voting rights and the qualification, the voter ID law makes tougher qualifications than what the constitution imagines.
“The question will be when can the Legislature enact a law that imposes other requirements to vote beyond those in the constitution,” he said.
He also said they argue other states with photo ID requirements that have been written into law have been approved in federal court under the U.S. Constitution, while Wisconsin’s constitution offers more explicit voting rights.
Franklin added current state law already calls for a stricter voting rule in the case of felons, who cannot vote until the completion of both prison and parole terms.
