So not having a valid ID and trying to vote counts as vote suppression?
How can anyone argue that voting without showing a valid state ID is even an option?
I hope voter IDs become mandatory in the near future, but it's got to be rolled out ethically:
1. They have to be free
2. They have to be "accessible" for the rural population
3. They have to be adequately communicated in advance of elections (1+ years, not 1+ months)
4. The process needs to be simple - require proof of citizenship or an ID that requires proof of citizenship.
I think there'd be no problem with having a few people stationed in post offices to do this. I'd imagine a fair amount of supporters would volunteer to do it if it meant improving the integrity of our elections.
I seems to me the whole point is that "valid ID" was extremely limited to only include "current driver’s license, passport, or state or military ID". This was not widely communicated until only a few months before the election.
For the impoverished a driver's license and passport are extraneous to every day life, a military ID is unlikely, and if you read further, state IDs were not easily obtainable in a reasonable amount of time.
Most states don't have such a requirement. And when it's implemented, it's usually intentionally designed to prevent poor people from voting. Requiring an ID is fine as long as it's free and easy for everyone, even the most disadvantaged, to get. In practice, that's not how it is though.
