[EL] Breaking News: PA voter id case

[Rick Hasen]

    Breaking News: PA Trial Court Requires State to Count Ballots from
    Voters Without ID This Election, Now Updated with Analysis
    <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=40927>

Posted on October 2, 2012 7:37 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=40927> 
by Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

You can find the judge's 18 page order here 
<http://electionlawblog.org/wp-content/uploads/pa-id-remand.pdf>.

In a nutshell, the judge has found that there will still be at least 
some voter disenfranchisement caused by the new law, because it does not 
appear that Pa. officials could get id's into the hands of everyone who 
wants one before the election. There earlier PA Supreme Court decision 
required the judge to enjoin enforcement of the law if he found 
disenfranchisement on remand, and he has.

But the judge enjoined only part of the law.  He said that the state can 
still ask for id, and give voters a provisional ballot if they lack the 
id.  However, the state /must count/ otherwise complying provisional 
ballots in this election even if the voter lacks id.

A more straightforward way to have handled things would have been to bar 
the state from even asking for id; this two step is bound to create some 
confusion.  And there are often problems with the counting of 
provisional ballots, which requires the exercise of some discretion by 
election officials.  Still, this likely will mean many fewer people in 
PA disenfranchised by this requirement in this election.

Either side may choose to appeal this ruling to the state Supreme 
Court.  The plaintiffs may ask for a broader injunction, barring the 
state from even asking for ID at the polls in this election.  The state 
may argue that it can implement the law in time.  I expect any state 
argument along these lines to be rejected by the state Supreme Court, 
given the last ruling. Less clear is how they might react to a further 
appeal from the Plaintiffs.

And after the election there will be a full trial on whether or not to 
permanently enjoin the law.  I predict that after this election, the PA 
courts will in fact uphold the voter id law, perhaps even on a unanimous 
vote of the state Supreme Court.

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-- 
Rick Hasen
Chancellor's Professor of Law and Political Science
UC Irvine School of Law
401 E. Peltason Dr., Suite 1000
Irvine, CA 92697-8000
949.824.3072 - office
949.824.0495 - fax
rhasen at law.uci.edu
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http://electionlawblog.org
Now available: The Voting Wars: http://amzn.to/y22ZTv

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