Gov. John Lynch vetoed a Senate bill that would have required voters to flash a photo ID before being allowed to enter the polls. The plan, Senate Bill 129, meant voters who couldn’t provide ID would get a provisional ballot that would be counted if they later presented identification to a city or town clerk, according to the bill.
Lynch said the plan risks denying residents their right to vote if they can’t get an ID or get back to the city or town clerk within three days, as the law would have required. “Voter turnout in New Hampshire is among the highest in the nation, election after election. There is no voter fraud problem in New Hampshire,” Lynch said in a statement. “We already have strong election laws that are effective in regulating our elections.”
House Speaker William O’Brien, R-Mont Vernon, took an activist role in bringing about the bill. He had tried unsuccessfully earlier this spring to convince a House committee to prevent out-of-state college students from taking part in New Hampshire elections.
“Today, our citizens have to show a valid ID to get on a plane, on a bus, to pick up a package and to enter a federal building. It certainly is not a major imposition to ask for a driver’s license or other ID in order to protect the integrity of voting,” O’Brien said in a prepared statement. “This is a good bill to ensure clean elections, and it’s very disappointing that Gov. Lynch has chosen against making sure that our elections are as pure as possible and free of corruption.”
Both the League of Women Voters and America Votes groups charged that the bill infringes on individual rights. The New Hampshire City and Town Clerks Association, AARP and the secretary of state also opposed the bill, Lynch pointed out.
Full Article: Governor vetoes voter ID bill – NashuaTelegraph.com.