E-Vote: Indiana Voter ID Ruling Won't Affect Missouri, Says Secretary of State

"While it's disappointing that the United States Supreme Court upheld Indiana's Photo ID law," said Missouri Secretary of State Robin Carnahan "this ruling will not impact Missouri voters. Today's opinion involves an Indiana law and does not change the 2006 Missouri Supreme Court decision that found Missouri's overly restrictive photo ID law unduly burdensome to voters and therefore, unconstitutional.

"It is my job to protect the rights of all Missouri voters and ensure fair elections," continued Carnahan in a release, "and elections cannot be fair if eligible voters are not allowed to vote.

"The Missouri case was decidedly different than the case heard by the U.S. Supreme Court for two reasons. First, because of the higher level of protection given to voters by the Missouri Constitution, and second because of the evidence provided about the number of Missourians adversely impacted and the burdens imposed. Unlike the U.S. Supreme Court, the Missouri Court found that as many as 240,000 Missouri registered voters -- mostly elderly, disabled, poor, and minority voters -- risked being disenfranchised because they lacked the government issued photo ID required."

In an opinion issued by the Missouri Supreme Court striking down as unconstitutional the 2006 Missouri Photo ID law, the court stated that, "Due to the more expansive and concrete protections of the right to vote under the Missouri Constitution, voting rights are an area where our state Constitution provides greater protection than its federal counterpart."