Senate committee hears hours of testimony after bill would bar student IDs for ballot access

Summary

A Senate committee heard opposition to House Bill 323, which would restrict the types of photo ID voters may use to obtain a ballot. Town clerks, student advocates and voting-rights groups said the change could disenfranchise students and others who lack easy access to DMV offices; proponents said the measure would strengthen election security.

A New Hampshire Senate committee heard extensive public testimony on House Bill 323, a proposal to require government-issued photo identification for ballot access and to remove many student and school IDs from the list of acceptable identification.

Representative Robert Wherry, speaking for the bill’s prime sponsor, said HB 323 does not change who may vote but ‘‘standardizes how identity is verified’’ and preserves free voter-only identification and a grace period for expired documents. He described the bill as intended to ‘‘apply the same straightforward rule in every town at every election’’ and to reduce ambiguity for election officials.

Town clerks and student advocates urged the committee to reject the change. Tracy Walsh, elected town clerk of Hanover and a member of the City and Town Clerks Association, said Dartmouth verifies identity when issuing student IDs and that removing student and…

Senate committee hears hours of testimony after bill would bar student IDs for ballot access

Summary

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