For what has been a divided and on-and-off issue for months, University of Wisconsin College Democrats and College Republicans now agree on what should qualify for student voter IDs.
But, the university says otherwise.
Though all three groups offer a variety of alternative IDs, each are determined to do what they believe is best for students to be able to vote when election time comes.
Dean of Students and Academic Staff Lori Berquam said UW offers free voter IDs at Union South, and getting one is easy.
By partnering up with Associated Students of Madison, Berquam said UW has been spreading the word through social media about the free IDs at Union South.
Coming together for students’ needs
Though the IDs are free and easy to obtain, student organizations College Democrats and College Republicans disagree with the use of a separate ID card for voting.
By releasing a joint statement, both organizations called upon the university to seek an alternative option to voter IDs.
Both groups agree that UW should change the current Wiscard into a form of identification compliant with Wisconsin’s voter ID laws according to the statement. And, according to the statement, while UW would change the identification cards, in the meantime, College Democrats and Republicans said placing stickers on the back of Wiscards to allow students to include their signature and expiration date would be an easier alternative for students than the voter IDs UW offers.
But Berquam said this idea could pose a potential security risk to students. Student use their Wiscards for multiple purposes on campus, like getting into buildings and buying food at the Unions — someone could see them using their card and take it.
“I think that the question I would ask is how would you feel?” Berquam asked. “Would you feel comfortable having your signature on the back of your Wiscard that you use?”
Another concern with the use of Wiscards as voter identification is the fact that the IDs would have to be renewed every two years in order to meet the voter ID guidelines, but UW’s ID cards are good for five years, Berquam said.
Divided at their roots
Despite their agreement to make it easier for students to obtain proper voting IDs, the College Democrats and College Republicans have different opinions when it comes to the requirement of voter IDs.
Anthony Birch, College Republicans chair said in a statement that the main focus of their group is making it easy for students to vote in a cost effective way — something he hopes the university administration is working diligently toward.
“As College Republicans, we are for making it easy to vote, but hard to cheat. We believe that the Voter ID law in Wisconsin makes it hard to cheat,” Birch said.
August McGinnity-Wake, College Democrats’ spokesperson said College Democrats do not believe in the voter ID law.
Berquam offered a more neutral stance on the topic.
“Clearly somebody thinks it is [necessary],” Berquam said. “No voter fraud issues have been elevated to me whether it’s for students or the public in general, but this is obviously a measure put in place because there is a belief that this is an issue.”
Though they may agree to disagree, the student organizations will continue to work together to determine a solution to make voting easier for students.
In the meantime, Berquam said she hopes in the future UW will encourage incoming freshman to pick up their voter ID cards while picking up their Wiscards at orientation.
