Supreme Court refuses to immediately reinstate photo ID requirement

Talk about it

Wisconsin voters will probably not have to show their photo IDs at the polls on Nov. 6. That’s what attorneys on both sides of the issue are saying after the State Supreme Court on Sept. 27 refused to immediately consider bringing back the ID mandate for the presidential contest.

Two judges in Madison struck it down earlier this year saying it discourages minorities, the poor, the elderly and college students from voting.

Republican Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen disagreed and challenged both rulings before a pair of appellate courts. A few weeks ago, Van Hollen asked the Supreme Court to take over both cases so he could try to get the law back in place for November.

But the justices said last week that the request was premature because initial appellate briefs had not been filed in one of the cases.

Van Hollen conceded that the photo ID mandate will not be in place in November. But he still has a last-second opportunity to try again in mid-October.

Attorney Rich Saks, who represents two groups that challenged the law, says it’s almost certain that IDs won’t be required in November. He called the Supreme Court’s delay a “terrific victory for voter rights.”

Van Hollen says he’ll continue to fight to have the law upheld, because he still believes it’s constitutional. Republicans approved it last year, but it’s only been used once. That was in the local primaries in February.

Tags: news, government, wisconsin, social