Conservatively Speaking
State Senator Mary Lazich (R-New Berlin) represents parts of four counties: Milwaukee, Waukesha, Racine, and Walworth. Her Senate District 28 includes New Berlin, Franklin, Greendale, Hales Corners, Muskego, Waterford, Big Bend and parts of Greenfield, East Troy, and Mukwonago. Senator Lazich has been in the Legislature for more than a decade. She considers herself a tireless crusader for lower taxes, reduced spending and smaller government.
The US Supreme Court takes up photo ID
By Mary Lazich
Wednesday, Jan 9 2008, 10:30 AM
With the Wisconsin Presidential primary just a month away and a recent audit showing terrible flaws in our voting system, I have renewed the call for a photo ID requirement in Wisconsin.
During June, 2006 a poll by Rasmussen Reports showed 77 percent of likely voters across the country agree that presenting a valid photo ID should be required to cast a vote. Democrats and liberals were a bit less likely to agree than members of other groups identified in the survey.On another question, 68 percent said that election ballots should be printed in English-only. Twenty-nine percent said ballots should be posted in both English and Spanish. About three quarters or more of Republicans, unaffiliated voters, conservatives and moderates agree with an English-only requirement; only 54 percent of Democrats and 55 percent of liberals also agree.
Today, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear a case to determine if states can impose photo ID requirements.
One of the criticisms of photo ID is that such a requirement will prevent individuals voting. Not so, according to a study by the Heritage Foundation. Here are the findings:
- White survey respondents in photo identification states are 0.002 percent less likely to report voting than white respondents from states that only required voters to state their name.
- African-American respondents in non-photo identification states are 0.012 percent less likely to report voting than African-American respondents from states that only required voters to state their name.
In other cases, no effect was found.
- In general, respondents in photo identification and non-photo identification states are just as likely to report voting compared to respondents from states that only required voters to state their name.
- African-American respondents in photo identification states are just as likely to report voting compared to African-American respondents from states that only required voters to state their name.
- Hispanic respondents in photo identification states are just as likely to report voting compared to Hispanic respondents from states that only required voters to state their name.
Here is the Heritage Foundation study.
This is a simple common sense case that needs to be addressed to protect the integrity of our elections. The Supreme Court, I trust, will render the appropriate ruling and allow states to enact photo ID laws.
Then Wisconsin needs to take the next step and put a photo ID law on our books.
