The Michigan Supreme Court issued a 5-2 ruling today that upholds a state law requiring voters to show a photo ID in order to vote. Critics had argued that the ID requirement was essentially a poll tax that would keep poor, elderly, disable, and voters of color from voting. The Supreme Court ruled that because voters do not have to incur the costs of ID before voting that it is not a poll tax. Voters would be allowed to obtain a ballot without an ID if they sign an affidavit swearing their identity.
The law was passed in 1996 and was renewed in 2005 but never took effect after Democratic Party Attorney General Frank Kelley ruled that it violated the equal protection clause of the 14th amendment.
