UNDATED (WSAU) A ruling that would have allowed Wisconsin voters to cast ballots by swearing out an affidavit instead of showing voter ID at polling stations has been stayed. A ruling by a three-judge panel of the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals puts the ruling on hold.
Judge Lynn Adelman had ruled that allowing affidavits would be a safety net for people who had trouble getting state-approved ID. But the appeals court ruling says, “the district court has not attempted to distinguish genuine difficulties of the kind our opinion mentioned, or any other variety of substantial obstacle to voting…” The appeals court also said there is a substantial likelihood that the injunction will be reversed on appeal.
Governor Scott Walker issued a statement: “Voter ID is a reasonable measure to protect Wisconsin voters against cheating and make sure every vote counts. Today’s decision to halt the injunction issued by Judge Adelman is a step in the right direction. The decision recognized that his previous ruling is likely to be reversed in light of Supreme Court precedent…”
“We are pleased with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit’s decision to grant our motion for stay in Wisconsin’s voter ID case,” Attorney General Brad Schimel said in a statement. “I will continue to represent the State of Wisconsin and defend the rule of law until the case is resolved.”
“The decision by the Seventh Circuit panel guarantees the disenfranchisement of vulnerable Wisconsin citizens in November. We are evaluating our options to ensure that our clients and many others are not denied their voting rights,” said Dale Ho, Director of the American Civil Liberties Union Voting Rights Project
Today’s court ruling does not undo a separate voter ID ruling from Judge James D. Peterson. In that case Peterson struck down several changes to state election law, including voter identification and limits on weekend and early voting. Peterson ruled that the changes were intended to suppress minority and Democratic votes, and that the state had not proved that concerns about election fraud were sufficient for such sweeping changes. The state has also filed an appeal challenging that ruling.
Wisconsin Radio Network contributed to this report.
