US Supreme Court allows New Hampshire not to accept student IDs — The Hill

The US Supreme Court allowed New Hampshire’s chief election official not to accept student identification cards at all to verify voters’ identities in the midterm elections. The decision was made following the state’s emergency application, supported by the Republican National Committee, The Hill reports.

Dispute over identification cards

Earlier, a lower court ruled that New Hampshire officials had gone beyond the scope of the state’s new law, which introduced restrictions on the use of student identification cards to obtain a ballot. In that court’s view, if a voter had no other means of proving their identity, the state still had to consider the student ID along with other evidence.

The Supreme Court criticized the district court’s intervention because it came too close to the November elections. In a brief unsigned order, the majority stated that the district court had provided no grounds for departing from the principle that court rulings on the eve of elections may confuse voters.

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Jackson’s dissent

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson publicly dissented. She said that this principle should not apply, as the lower court’s decision was intended to provide voters with accurate information about voting rules. According to her, a judicial ban on substantial distortions of election rules does not create confusion but prevents it.

The Supreme Court’s order is not a final decision in the dispute, and the case may return to court after the midterm elections. New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella called the decision a victory for protecting the state’s election laws and preventing uncertainty for voters and election officials.