UNH Students Speak Amid Lawsuit Challenging Restriction Of Using Student IDs To Vote

By ZACH LAIRD, InDepth NH

DURHAM, NH — Some students at University of New Hampshire are speaking out in the wake of a lawsuit that challenges the use of student IDs to vote, expressing concerns that it would cause confusion among young voters and limit their ability to participate in politics.

House Bill 323 — which made student IDs a no longer valid form of identification to obtain a ballot — was signed into law by Republican Gov. Kelly Ayotte in April. That same month, Secretary of State David Scanlan released a directive advising that student IDs cannot be used as proof of ID when registering to vote, requesting an absentee ballot, or checking in to vote in an election. A lawsuit was filed in August by Free Speech for People, representing Coalition for Open Democracy (a voter education and outreach group) asking the Court to enjoin both HB 323 and Scanlan’s directive before the election.

“I believe that student IDs are valid in the court system, and because a student ID is just enough of identification like a real ID would be. I don’t know why you need to bring extra identification… I feel like college students don’t really bring — or have other forms of identification, especially since they have a home, but they’re not there very often — so, they keep all of their identification at home. So, it takes a toll on how many people are able to vote,” UNH student Dalaney Trudeau said Monday.

Secretary of State Scanlan’s motion for a stay on the legal proceedings for the lawsuit was denied by the First Circuit Court of Appeals, though an emergency stay has been requested from the U.S. Supreme Court. Previously, a federal judge ruled that student IDs can still be considered by election officials at polling places as evidence of voter identity. They can still be used for considering voter identification if supplemented with other documentation.

Head of UNH’s Media Relations Tania DeLuzuriaga said the university has not taken a position on the lawsuit.

Michael Garrity, spokesman for the New Hampshire Office of the Attorney General, said there were no updates to the case as of Monday.

“The State has asked the United States Supreme Court for an emergency stay in this matter. New Hampshire has a strong interest in ensuring that its election laws are applied consistently and that local election officials have clear, workable guidance in administering elections,” Garrity said.

Prime sponsor of HB 323, Rep. Donald McFarlane, R-Orange, did not respond for comment. Co-sponsor Rep. Ross Berry, R-Weare, insisted that the public supports the measure. When asked about the concerns from UNH students that the situation would cause confusion among young voters and how they feel it could limit the amounts of students who vote, Berry said: “I don’t see how that is a thing.”

Another student, Olivia Rose of Barrington, said it’s unacceptable and restricting their ability to vote doesn’t seem appropriate. She said it would make students more detached from politics because they won’t feel the need to look into what’s going on politically (and) that limiting their ability to vote and participate in politics would make them less likely to try.

UNH student Kai Shanahan said being able to use student IDs is a good way to prove voter identification “because sometimes, students aren’t able to get a driver’s license or a non-driver’s ID. Especially since for a lot of people at college, it’s their first time being out of the house.”

Shanahan added she feels it would cause more confusion for young voters in college and “definitely stop people from voting.”

According to data from July by the Civics Center — a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization aimed at encouraging young people to vote — noted that just 7% of 18-year-olds are registered to vote in the state as of March 31. It also highlighted how “there is not a single county in the state where the rate was at 10% or more as of March.”

The data shows that, per county, the various rates of 18-year-olds registered to vote are:

• Rockingham: 9.4%
• Carroll: 8.3%
• Sullivan: 8.1%
• Cheshire: 7.0%
• Grafton: 6.7%
• Strafford: 6.7%
• Hillsborough: 6.6%
• Merrimack: 6.4%
• Belknap: 5.4%
• Coos: 4.0%

Student James Frady, from Massachusetts, said he wasn’t aware of the lawsuit but if a student ID is supplemented with other forms of documentation to prove voter identification that “I see it as a valid marker that you’re here at UNH and you’re in the system.”

“I’m from Massachusetts, and I voted in Massachusetts, but I think it’s definitely a hassle to get all the documents in order. And that could definitely make it easier if student IDs were allowed as an option,” Frady said.

House Democratic Leader Rep. Alexis Simpson, D-Exeter said: “Eligible voters have a fundamental right to cast a ballot, and deliberately removing ways to prove identity is voter suppression. For six years, Republicans have made it harder to register, vote absentee, and prove identity at the polls as the cost of living has skyrocketed. If Republicans had an agenda Granite Staters wanted, they would run on that instead of attacking the right to vote.”

House Majority Leader Jason Osborne, R-Auburn said he did not have any comments on the matter.

This story was originally published by InDepth NH.