Three special elections in January will test Arkansas’ new voter ID law that took effect Wednesday. On Jan. 14, voters in Craighead County will elect a state senator to replace Sen. Paul Bookout, who resigned in August after he was cited by the Arkansas Ethics Commission. Poll workers will be trained about the law before the election, Craighead County Election Commissioner Scott McDaniel told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. “Anytime a change happens, you can anticipate problems, but you just make it as smooth as you can with good, intensive training and a backup plan,” he said. “The provisional ballot process has been in place for a while. And we will err on the side of caution and making sure our goal of making every legitimate vote count.”
The voter-identification requirement was approved by the Legislature during the 2013 session. Previously, poll workers asked voters for identification but voters were not required to produce it before casting a ballot.
McDaniel said Craighead County is training workers for about 20 polling sites that will be open for the Jan. 14 election. There also will be a trainer at each location to help with voter-identification determinations when necessary.
“Because this is a special election and there has been a lot of advertising from both parties, it could easily be a close election where the provisional ballots make the difference,” he said.
Full Article: Arkansas’ new voter ID requirement takes effect – SFGate.