[EL] in-person voter fraud Washington 2004 follow up

[David A. Schultz]

Rick:


Good question and you make my point.  I think studies on photo Id claiming that deter voter fraud run the same problem as any other study about criminal laws and claims that deter xyz.  It is impossible to prove deterrence.


Conversely, I have yet to see a good study that really documents the impact of voter ID laws on suppressing voting.  I think there are research design issues, ecological fallacy problems, and perhaps a host of other issues that make it difficult to ascertain  the real impact.


Having said that, American history is littered with many policies, enacted with the belief they will achieve certain results, and they do not.


David,
Have you applied the same examination of evidence to the question whether voter identification laws actually deter much voting?  The best study I've seen on the question indicates that the issue may not be empirically resolvable, at least not yet.
Rick
David Schultz, Professor
Editor, Journal of Public Affairs Education (JPAE)
Hamline University
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>>> Rick Hasen  07/31/11 2:44 PM >>>