A Senate committee voted Tuesday to advance a bill to require voters to show photo identification at the polls. In a voice vote with no audible dissent, the all-Republican Senate State Agencies and Governmental Affairs Committee gave a “do pass” recommendation to House Bill 1047 by Rep. Mark Lowery, R-Maumelle. The bill, which passed in the House last month in a 74-21 vote, goes next to the full Senate. Lowery told the committee the bill has been amended since it passed the House. Previously, the bill stated that a voter who did not show photo ID could cast a provisional ballot. The provisional ballot would be counted if the voter showed photo ID to the county clerk or county election board by noon on the Monday after the election.
Under the amended bill, a voter casting a provisional ballot would be given the option of signing a sworn statement, under penalty of perjury, that the voter is who he or she claims to be.
The county clerk would compare the signature to the signature on the voter registration card issued to that person, and if they matched, the provisional ballot would be counted without the voter having to go to the clerk or the election board.
The amended bill also would allow a person submitting an absentee ballot to sign a statement that could be used to verify the person’s identity if no photo ID is submitted.
Full Article: Voter ID bill advances.