The Rise and Fall of Pennsylvania's Voter Identification Law

Abstract

Enacted in the wake of election 2000, the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA) mandated nationwide standards in the conduct of federal elections. Several states went beyond the statutory requirements of HAVA and passed legislation requiring voters to show photo IDs at the polls. Pennsylvania passed such a law in 2012, triggering a protracted legal battle in state courts that continued well after that year’s presidential election. Although the Commonwealth lost this fight because of noncompliance with the statutory guarantee of liberal access to voter ID cards, the law may yet be upheld should the appeal process be taken further.