A proposed Constitutional amendment, requiring photo identification to vote in Wisconsin, has passed an Assembly committee. Republican Representative Jeff Stone made the case for the amendment, which he maintains is not an effort to restrict access to the polls by minority or Democratic voters. "We want to make sure that everyone has what they need to vote, that everyone who is eligible to vote votes, and that those votes are counted fairly and accurately," Stone told the Assembly Committee on Elections and Constitutional Law.
Andrea Kaminsky with the League of Women Voters said the amendment is not needed. "This amendment is a draconian solution to a trumped up problem," said Kaminsky. Milwaukee Democrat, Representative Annette Williams who serves on the committee, said requiring an ID to vote is different than showing ID in order to board a plane. "Voting, that's just like breathing, that's a right," said Williams.
Another committee member, Republican Phil Montgomery, said a constitutional amendment is needed because Governor Doyle could use his partial veto power to rewrite voter ID legislation. Doyle has twice vetoed voter ID bills which have passed the legislature. The committee voted 5-3 to forward the amendment to the full Assembly.