This week, a supermajority of lawmakers sent a bill to the desk of Gov. Jay Nixon (D). Even if the governor vetoes, as he did to a similar one in 2011, lawmakers may have the votes to override it.
Democrats in the state Senate staged an all-night filibuster last week to stop the ID bill, but backed down after striking a compromise deal with Republicans.
The deal involves amendments to the bill that progressive lawmakers say will “ensure no voter is denied his or her Constitutional right to vote.” For instance, the state would be required to provide
free photo IDs and any underlying documents necessary to obtain them, such as birth certificates and Social Security cards. Additionally, voters who are unable to get the required ID for whatever reason would be able to sign a legally-binding affidavit promising they are who they say they are, and could then vote with regular ballots.
This is aimed at preventing problems that have surfaced in other states with voter ID laws, including Wisconsin and Texas, where citizens who can’t afford a copy of their birth certificate or lack the means of transportation to get one have been disenfranchised.
Rep. Shamed Dogan (R-Ballwin) called it “the most generous photo ID bill that this country has seen.”
Yet voting rights advocates, including Laura Swinford with the organization Progress Missouri, say they’re not pleased. “They said this will minimize the effect on Missouri voters, but I don’t frankly agree with that interpretation,” she told ThinkProgress. “Depending on how you were raised and socialized, signing documents can be a barrier in and of itself.” She added that it can be especially intimidating for less-educated voters to be handed a complex form that, if filled out improperly, can result in a felony charge for perjury.