The Wisconsin State Assembly passed a bill Thursday requiring all voters to show poll workers a valid Wisconsin photo identification card before casting their ballots or registering to vote on Election Day.

The bill, approved 61-36, also allows voters to obtain a Wisconsin ID card free of charge from the Department of Transportation.

The bill was introduced because many Republicans expressed concern over alleged voting irregularities last November during the presidential election.

Since the 2000 presidential race’s closure, members of the GOP across the nation have been entertaining numerous variations of election reform.

Supporters of the bill hope the mandate of photo IDs will reduce the amount of voter fraud in the state.

Rep. Steve Freese, R-Dodgeville, said 3,450 ghost voters were confirmed in Milwaukee after the 2000 presidential election. He estimates the number could be greater than 12,000 statewide.

“The legislation is going to make it harder to cheat but easier to vote,” Freese said.

But opponents of the bill fear the legislation might decrease voter turnout, create undue problems for voters and possibly result in the elimination of many votes from minorities and the poor who may not currently have an ID card.

“Requiring photo ID will hinder the process,” Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Madison, said. “The inconvenience of going to the DOT will suppress voter turnout.”

Pocan cited the two-hour wait many residents east of the UW-Madison campus endured during last year’s election and said the amount of time voters stand in line for could double with these new regulations.

Pocan also said the bill will disproportionately affect people with low income, people of color and senior citizens, all of whom historically have voted for Democrats.

“This is a Republican agenda nationally,” Pocan said. “We see this as a political maneuver to suppress liberal voters.”

Those who oppose the bill also question the cost of the bill.

The Legislative Fiscal Bureau estimates the legislation would cost the state $856,900 annually.

Many who voted against the bill claim the legislation may be unconstitutional because, they allege, it violates the federal Voting Rights Act.

A federal judge recently barred a Massachusetts city from requiring voters to show ID in last week’s mayoral election on those same grounds.

Proponents of the bill deny the legislation is unconstitutional.

Freese said the constitutionality of the bill would have already been challenged in one of the 19 states that currently require voters to present IDs.

“It is a bogus, red-herring argument,” Freese said. “Those opposing the bill simply aren’t as concerned with the integrity of elections. We want clean and clear elections for our state.”

According to some of the bill’s opponents, it will also indirectly discourage students from voting. Many nonresident UW students do not have Wisconsin ID cards. Students without the proper form of ID will have to chose between obtaining an ID card from the DOT or voting absentee.

Many UW students from outside the state said they will continue to vote absentee to avoid any red tape.

Dan Leopold, a UW graduate student from Columbus, Ohio, said he will continue to vote absentee. Leopold said the new legislation proves problematic for students like himself.

“Some people don’t have the means to obtain the IDs,” Leopold said. “It will disadvantage many people.”

Kevin McCartney, a UW sophomore from Fayetteville, Ark., said this new legislation will hinder student votes.

“I’ll vote absentee because it’s too much of a hassle,” McCartney said. “I think it’s probably trying to deter students from voting since most students vote Democratically.”

However, some say students should take the time to help make the process easier in the long run.

“If people really want to make their vote count, they will find the means to get an ID,” said Todd McVicker, a UW junior from North Mankato, Minn. “I don’t think it’s a problem. In the long run it will make voting more accurate, and it’s worth the loss of some votes to make voting more fair overall.”

The legislation needs the approval of the state Senate and Gov. Scott McCallum to become law.