Restrictive Voter ID Laws, Essay Example

There have been numerous instances where the question of whether individuals should be expected to have valid IDs when entering a voting ballot. Despite the fact that these voter ID laws have been increasingly enforced by recent years, it goes without a saying that there are invariably some individuals who highly disagree with the idea of everyone needing a valid ID. On the other hand, there are others who argue that only through the use of a valid ID can one prove who he truly is. When both of these arguments are put into perspective, it is immediately seen that it is often difficult to side with either side. This is because of the manner in which both sides bring forth excellent points. Therefore, the only manner through which a manner like this could be effectively resolved is by taking an in-depth look at all of the options that are offered and at hand. (“Should Photo ID Be Required to Vote?” )

To start off, it must first be understood why some individuals find it increasingly vital that people have their own respective IDs when casting a vote for a presidential election, or any kind of election, for that matter. The reason as to why this is deemed to imperative is because of the manner in which many votes can be done by the same individual if he or she does not present the proper ID at once. What is meant by this is that an individual could say that he or she is someone who he or she clearly is not. This would cast an unfair voting advantage for whatever candidate that individual would have voted for. (The Editorial Board)

It goes without saying that these methods would be incredibly illegal and could ultimately place all of the people who perform these things in a state penitentiary. However, there are some individuals who have such a yearning for one side of a campaign to win the election that they will go to far extents just to be a spectator to the candidate winning. In regards to individuals all carrying voter IDs, there are a vast majority of individuals who argue that this would prevent individuals from voting under the name of another person. These people believe that by presenting a valid ID, their name would go into the system that they have already voted, therefore, forbidding them to vote again. (“Should Photo ID Be Required to Vote?”)   Opposing sides argue that this would place an unfair biased advantage for those individuals who have valid IDs, given the fact that there are many individuals in the United States who do not have the proper ID nor documentation to present at a voting ballot. Now, this is not to say that these individuals do not have the right to vote, because they do. The individuals who argue for everyone to be able to vote, with or without proper IDs, often cite the United States Constitution, which clearly states that all should have the right to vote. These individuals also make it a grand point to indicate the fact that there is absolutely nothing that says that in the Constitution that individuals must have valid IDs with them in order to have the right to vote. (The Editorial Board)

Some of these individuals often times go as far as to say that by not allowing everyone to vote, the Supreme Court is making the voting ballot unfair to both campaigns, given that one campaign will undoubtedly have the upper hand over the other campaign. While there are many who strongly believe in these statements, there are other who simply take this as an overstatement and believe that proper documentation and/or IDs should be presented at the time of voting to ensure a fair casting ballot. The biggest problem that this presents, however, are both sides of the argument wanting a fair voting process attained through different methods. (Lee)

It goes without saying that there is truly no right or wrong side to the argument at hand. Each individuals wishes to have his or her own voting process and it often seems unsatisfactory when both sides of one specific argument are not able to obtain what they both desire. Regardless, many states in the United States have already decided to take an initiative and ensure that all individuals within the state have the proper IDs required when they are going in to vote. On the other hand, there are many other states who, in the past, required nothing more than a simple signature to be allowed to enter a voting ballot and cast their vote. (National Conference of State Legislatures)

Because of the manner in which society has evolved throughout the ages, there are many who argue that a signature would simply not be enough nowadays to ensure that a certain individual would vote only once. However, the opposing individuals argue that invalid, fake IDs would be made if and when IDs were required by all states. They argue that these fake IDs could be used under an alias in order to ensure that individuals would be able to vote more than once. Both sides of the argument recognize that this would be completely immoral and illegal, but it gets a point across that if individuals truly wanted to, they could go to whatever extents they wished in order to be able to allow themselves to vote more than once when provided the opportunity. (National Conference of State Legislatures)

The only manner through which a manner like this could be effectively resolved is by taking an in-depth look at all of the options that are offered and at hand. Once both sides of the argument have been extensively analyzed, it comes as no surprise that the question at hand is not a simple yes or no answer. This kind of question needs reasoning, more questioning, and analyzation. Only then can one come to the conclusion of what should be done in a time where there are so many individuals who are willing to go to extremes just so that they are able to vote more than once. On the other hand, it must also be put into the question that everyone should be allowed to vote, with or without ID, because of the manner in which the United States Constitution has been formulated. (Lee)

Works Cited

Lee, Suevon. “Everything You’ve Ever Wanted to Know About Voter ID Laws.”ProPublica. ProPublica, 5 Nov. 2012. Web. 1 July 2015.

National Conference of State Legislatures. “Voter Identification Requirements Voter ID Laws.” Voter Identification Requirements | Voter Id Laws. National Conference of State Legislatures, 24 Mar. 2015. Web. 1 July 2015.

“Should Photo ID Be Required to Vote?” U.S. News & World Report: News, Rankings and Analysis on Politics, Education, Healthcare and More. U.S. News & World Report, n.d. Web. 1 July 2015.

The Editorial Board. “The Dishonesty of Voter ID Laws – The New York Times.” The New York Times – Breaking News, World News & Multimedia. The New York Times, 30 Sept. 2013. Web. 1 July 2015.