New Study Finds Voter ID Laws Reduce Political Participation

Voter identification laws reduce reduce participation in the political process, according to new research released this week by faculty at the Brown University.

The study, which examined voter registration, voter turnout, and the decision to become a citizen, found that in the 2004 elections, minority turnout in the 19 states that had voter ID laws on the books was suppressed by more than 400,000 votes. Sociology professor John Logan and graduate student Jennifer Darrah authored the study, which was published on the web site of Brown University's Spatial Structures in the Social Sciences.

"It is incredibly clear how voter I.D. requirements disproportionately affect and suppress minorities," said Logan in a release announcing the research findings. "This data shows that if voter I.D. policies had not been in place in 2004, voter turnout would have increased by more than 1.6 million. That is a strong argument in itself for change."

The Help America Vote Act of 2002 mandated that all states require identification from first-time voters who initially registered via mail, who also did not submit verification with their initial registration. Twenty-five states have more stringent voter identification laws than those set out in the Help America Vote Act (HAVA). In 2004, 19 states had enacted voter identification laws, according to the research.

Voter identification policies in 2004 decreased voter registration and voter turnout for Asians by around 14 percent, and by 20 percent for Blacks, according to the study.

The study also found that voter identification laws discourage legal immigrants from become citizens, especially in the case of Blacks and Hispanics. Overall, the study found that the odds of naturalization was reduced by more than 5 percent.

In addition, the effect that voter identification laws had on voters was seen most strongly in minority populations, as well as those with less than a high-school education, those making less than $15,000 per year, and those who have moved recently.

"At a time when many public officials express regret that immigrants seem to lag in their participation in mainstream society, even small suppressive effects on naturalization - the formal step to becoming an American citizen - work in the wrong direction and should be taken into account as people evaluate the benefits and costs of more stringent identification requirements," Logan and Darrah said in the study report.

According to the release, a challenge to the constitutionality of voter identification requirements is under consideration by the U.S. Supreme Court, in the case of Crawford v. Marion County Election Board, an Indiana case.

"Voter I.D. Requirements Reduce Political Participation, Study Finds." Brown University web site
"State Requirements for Voter ID." National Conference of State Legislatures
"Help America Vote Act." Wikipedia
"Spatial Structures in the Social Sciences." S4 web site
Dr. John Logan, "The Suppressive Effects of Voter ID Requirements on Naturalization and Political Participation." S4 web site