October 2, 2012

http://www.allvoices.com/contributed-news/13102138-pennsylvania-voter-id-law-struck-down-in-court

One of the strictest new voter ID laws in the country was struck down on Tuesday, after Pennsylvania Commonwealth Judge Robert Simpson granted plaintiffs an injunction.However, the voter ID law was not blocked because of the absence of need to prevent non-existent voter fraud.

The Pennsylvania voter ID law threatened to disenfranchise up to 750,000 people, in a state where attorneys on both sides of the issue admitted that no known cases of voter fraud had ever been discovered.

Instead, the ruling was based on the difficulty citizens were having in obtaining the new ID cards in time for Election Day on Nov. 6. However, future elections in Pennsylvania may require voter ID.

Pennsylvania voters trying to get their voter ID cards were faced with waiting in line for several hours at the state's motor vehicle offices.

They were also required to provide more documentation for voter ID than is currently required to get a U.S. passport.

To get a voter ID card in Pennsylvania, applicants had to produce two proofs of local residency in the form of a utility bill or tax bill, an original birth certificate, Social Security card, and proof of citizenship.

The Pennsylvania voter ID law is not expected to be immediately appealed because the higher court that returned it to Judge Simpson would likely strike it down.