The House approved HB351 that would require a government photo ID to vote. It was a substitute bill that eliminated the allowance of utility bills or other means of identification. It passed by a vote of 66-48, which is not a margin that would override a veto.
Representative David Lewis (R-Harnett) said while Democrats claimed it was a “solution looking for a problem,” he said the bill was a “problem looking for prevention.”
Members of the House black caucus said it harkened back to the days of slavery and Jim Crow and was meant to keep minorities from voting.
Lewis noted Georgia passed a similar bill in 2006 and in the 2008 election there was a higher percentage of increase in black voters than in North Carolina. He also said the Georgia law withstood court challenges.
The bill goes to the Senate.
The resistance to Voter ID is absurd. You are required by LAW to show a state issued DL, ID, US Passport, or Military ID to get a commercial fishing license in NC. This law was enacted by a predominately Democratic legislature 12 YEARS ago. This argument is just another divisive measure to continue to cause disruption and discord in our state. Please, ladies and gentlemen, you are elected to make North Carolina a great state, you are adults, and your citizens are not stupid, nor are we your subordinates but your peers.