As of January 2024, 34 states required voters to present identification in order to vote at the polls on Election Day. The states vary on exactly what that identification should be, but some identification is required.
On Tuesday, Hot Air posted an article that illustrates why requiring voters to show some form of identification is a good idea.
The article reports:
Here’s a story that shows a political prank can turn into a good case for the need for voter identification when registering to vote. It involves five recording artists and a house in Katy, Texas.
Katy is a city west of Houston, in the Houston metro area. Katy’s population at the time of the 2020 census was 21,894. The point is that it is a small city, most often thought of as a suburb of Houston. There is a story out today that recording artists Drake, 50 Cent, Chris Brown, Trey Songz, and The Game are all registered to vote with the same address in Katy.
The house is described as “a beige, $300,000 house in a modest new development in Katy.” The homeowner had no idea why the men were registered to vote at that address. Neighbors said they had not seen the performers.
It’s a prank that uses a federal loophole in voter ID laws.
…The apparent prank shines a spotlight on a potential loophole in federal voting registration law that allows virtually anyone to register friends, enemies or celebrities to vote. Whether the intent is malicious or not, experts say it is still illegal.
The article concludes:
What is this federal loophole that allows people to register to vote without an ID? It is the Help America Vote Act of 2002. Eligible voters without a driver’s license or a Social Security number are able to take advantage of it. There are some people who are eligible to vote but don’t have either. It might be someone born outside the United States who never applied for a Social Security number.
When they go to vote, they have to show some other form of identity, like a utility bill. For example, Drake wouldn’t be able to do that.
Don’t worry. This doesn’t pose a threat to the singers’ actual voter registrations if they are registered in Texas.
This story, odd as it is, is a good example of the need to close the federal loophole that allows voter registration applications to be presented without identification. It invites shenanigans and creates extra work for election officials.
It is particularly urgent to get voter identification in place because of the number of illegal aliens currently in America that may be encouraged to vote.