University students will be able to use their student ID cards in the upcoming November midterm elections, a fact which Student Council Legislative Affairs Committee co-chair Zach Cohen said minimizes the impact of the state's new voter identification laws, which critics say will disproportionately affect minority and low-income voters.
Cohen, a second-year Law student, said the ability to use student IDs will make the polls much more accessible to students. The provision, Cohen said, makes Virginia’s voter ID laws more flexible than those of other states because it doesn't require a valid Virginia ID or passport to vote.
Cohen said Council will put up signs to ensure students remember to bring their student IDs to the polls.
“One of the things that Student Council is making sure of is that student who wouldn’t ordinarily be carrying their student IDs know that they have to bring it when they go to vote,” Cohen said.
Albemarle County General Registrar Jake Washburne said students have a variety of options when choosing an ID, though he did note that out-of-state students could not use their driver's licenses.
“When you go to vote, there are several forms of acceptable photo ID,” Washburne said. “One of them is the University of Virginia student photo ID — that’ll be fine — a Virginia driver’s license is a good, acceptable photo ID, a U.S passport is good, a government-issued photo ID is good, an employer-issued photo ID is good. If somebody doesn’t have any of those acceptable forms of ID, they can come to any voter registration office in the Commonwealth to get a Voter Registration ID made for them.”
Washburne said he doesn’t expect wait times at polls to increase due to these new ID laws.
“I don’t foresee it increasing the wait times too awful much,” Washburne said. “We predict that most people are going to have an acceptable ID.”
Read More
BREAKING: Two fraternities suspended, one terminated after hazing allegations
By Ford McCracken | 6 hours agoThe University’s chapter of Pi Kappa Alpha is the founding chapter of the fraternity, which was founded in West Range room 47 in 1868.
From the archives: April 22 – April 28
By Maisy Callahan and Grace Franklin | 8 hours agoThose opposed to the Mall feared closing Main St. would create inconvenience and traffic, which would in turn decrease the income made by merchants.
Students for Justice in Palestine criticizes University at “die-in” on Lawn
By Thomas Baxter | YesterdayThe protest consisted of a speech by Josh Rosenberg, SJP president and third-year College student, followed by the reading of the names of 65 killed Palestinians.
