Students who are eligible to vote in New Hampshire will now need to show a government-issued photo ID, like a passport or drivers license, to cast ballots. That’s after Gov. Kelly Ayotte signed a bill last week outlawing the use of school IDs to verify a voter’s identity at the polls.
The change, which passed the House and Senate along party lines earlier this year, reverses a 2013 law that allowed the use of student IDs at polling places. It is set to take effect before this fall’s elections, posing a potential challenge for local election officials in college towns where many voters are accustomed to showing their student ID to get their ballot.
“Student IDs have no address verification, no citizenship check, no security features,” said Republican Rep. Ross Berry of Weare, the new law’s lead sponsor. “They were the weakest link in our election integrity framework, and now that loophole is closed.”
The law is the latest effort by Republican lawmakers to tighten state voting policies. In 2024, Republicans passed a law requiring first time New Hampshire voters to prove their citizenship when registering. That law, which took effect last year, is under challenge in federal court.
Voting rights groups say as many as 300 eligible voters were turned away during municipal elections last year due to that change and they say barring students who are already registered to vote from confirming their identities with school-identification cards will mean fewer eligible voters will cast ballots here.
“Student IDs are one piece of identification used to verify voters who are already registered,” said Lisa Kovack of the New Hampshire Campaign for Voting Rights. “The Trump administration has openly stated its desire to ensure only ‘the right people’ vote. Laws like this one are how that goal is pursued at the state level.”
Current New Hampshire law requires all registered voters to show a photo ID at their polling place to obtain a ballot. Drivers licenses, in and out of state are accepted, as are military ID, and U.S. passports.
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