Pa. ACLU plans to file lawsuit challenging voter ID law

One of the commonwealth’s largest civil rights groups is planning on challenging a new voter identification law in court.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania says it expects to file a lawsuit against the state within the next month.

The new law requires voters to present photo identification before casting ballots.

It won’t be in effect for the April 24 primary, but will be enforced in November.

ACLU legal director Vic Walczak says the voter ID law could prevent a number of Pennsylvanians from voting, including the elderly, college students and the poor.

“They tend to vote more Democratic than Republican,” said Walczak. “It’s hard not to be cynical that this isn’t an effort to suppress the vote.”

But Secretary of the Commonwealth Carol Aichele says the measure is needed to address a number of complaints coming into the state’s election offices.

“If someone doesn’t live in the district or they’ve been living in Europe for the last 10 years, this person isn’t really registered for one reason or another,” said Aichele. 

 

Both Walczak and Aichele appeared on WITF’s Radio Smart Talk.

Aichele says there are hundreds of reports of voter fraud in the state during each election cycle, but only one case has been proven.