The primary bill, slated to be revised and sent to the House over Democratic opposition, is now like a separate Republican-supported ballot action that could be enacted by GOP lawmakers without Whitmer’s veto if enough signatures are collected, according to the article.
The regular legislation would need potential absentee voters to include their driver’s license number, state ID number or the last four digits of their Social Security number. Democrats (along with at least some House Republicans) disagree and think it is more than what is needed — presently all that is required is signing the application.
“We have a system here that’s secure. We have a system here that’s dependable. This is about restricting voting. It’s about making it more difficult,” Sen. Jeff Irwin, an Ann Arbor Democrat, said in the article.
Democrats have cautioned in the past that these new voting requirements would cause longer lines in Black and brown communities (particularly urban areas), among other problems.
However, Sen. Aric Nesbitt, a Lawton Republican, said that the updates would be just “common sense” to require a photo ID and added that such requirements are needed to rent a car, drink a beer or apply for state assistance, per the article.
“It’s not suppression,” he said.
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