WASHINGTON — A measure requiring voters to show photo identification at the polls is expected to pass the House today, marking another step in a push toward stricter scrutiny of citizenship status in the U.S.
The legislation is one of a series of tightly focused bills crafted by House Republican leaders who want to strengthen border security and crack down on illegal immigration. Its sponsor, Rep. Henry J. Hyde (R-Ill.), calls it a safeguard against voter fraud.
The proposed Federal Election Integrity Act follows a spate of state laws passed this year that mandate photo ID or proof of citizenship to vote. One such law was declared unconstitutional Tuesday by a Georgia judge, who said the state's new photo ID requirements infringed on voter rights.
Democrats say that the move to impose a national photo ID requirement is part of a Republican effort to discourage participation by low-income and minority voters likely to back Democratic candidates -- a charge GOP lawmakers strongly deny.
In today's House debate, some Democrats intend to argue that the bill's requirement that voters provide proof of citizenship starting in 2010 would create a hurdle for some that effectively amounted to a "poll tax."
The Senate is not likely to take up the measure this session, but House GOP lawmakers say they expect to keep pressing and make the issue a congressional priority next year.
"It's not going to go into oblivion," said Rep. Vernon J. Ehlers (R-Mich.), chairman of the House Administration Committee that produced the bill.
He defended the need for tighter election laws and noted that Canada, Germany and Britain require photo IDs to vote.
"There is, I believe, increasing fraud in voting in the U.S.," Ehlers said. He described an example of "a guy in Kentucky who always voted for himself and his dog, then he got greedy and voted three times for himself and three times for his dog."
The bill would require Americans to show a government-issued photo ID to take part in federal elections starting in November 2008 -- the next presidential election. By 2010, voters would have to present a photo ID that could only be obtained by providing proof of citizenship.
Ehlers said the bill builds on the Real ID Act, a law enacted last year that takes effect in 2008 and requires applicants to prove legal residency in the U.S. to obtain a driver's license. Under the law, the new licenses will indicate whether the holder is a citizen or legal resident.
