FLORIDA: Florida's New Driver's License Rule Is Blatant Trans Voter Suppression / The New Republic
Florida recently announced that it will no longer honor Floridians’ requests to amend the gender marker on their driver’s licenses. More than 600,000 Floridians have already updated the gender marker on their license, and these trans voters will now be prohibited from renewing their driver’s license with their accurate gender marker. Some may decide not to vote rather than have to show an inaccurate license to polling place workers and risk facing intimidation, discrimination, or harassment if their ID doesn’t reflect their gender presentation.
NEBRASKA: Secretary of State's Office Sending Letters to Voters Who Might Not Have Photo ID for Voting / The Alliance Times-Herald
A new photo ID law goes into effect in Nebraska for the first time for the statewide primary in May. Approximately 35,000 registered voters in Nebraska do not have an ID issued by the Nebraska DMV. Note: VoteRiders has already filed an open record request for this list of voters so we can reach out to them and offer them voter ID help.
NORTH CAROLINA: Voter ID Led to Confusion During NC Municipal Elections, Report Says / Carolina Public Press
After years of litigation, the North Carolina photo ID law was reinstated last year and was in effect for the first time for the fall 2023 municipal elections. Confusion and misinterpretation of the law by election officials resulted in inconsistent application of the law across the state. Poll workers failed to offer ID exception forms to some eligible voters, while others had their ballots incorrectly rejected by county boards of elections for ID reasons.
OHIO: Voting, Disability Rights Advocates Claim Ohio Photo Voter ID Law Violates Federal Disabilities Law / Ohio Capital Journal
In addition to instituting one of the country’s strictest photo ID laws for in-person voting last year, Ohio’s House Bill 458 also severely limits the list of individuals authorized to return absentee ballots on behalf of someone else. By removing caregivers and other non-family members, this limitation particularly impacts disabled and elderly voters, who are significantly more likely to need to vote by mail, especially in light of the new in-person photo ID requirement. This provision is now subject to a lawsuit claiming it violates the Americans with Disabilities Act by imposing “extreme burdens to vote that voters without disabilities will never face.”
TEXAS: Voting Rights Advocates Decry Program That Cost 600,000 Texans Their Driver's Licenses / Dallas Observer
At least 600,000 drivers in Texas have had their licenses suspended under a state program that targets unpaid tickets. Most voters are unaware that an expired or suspended license can still be used as an ID to vote. This confusion is likely to result in significant numbers of Texans believing they don’t have an acceptable ID to cast a ballot.
