New Hampshire lawmakers are considering a bill this week that would remove the option for voters who lack identification to cast a ballot on Election Day by signing an affidavit — raising concerns among voter rights advocates about potential voter disenfranchisement.
HB 460, sponsored by Republicans Robert Lynn, a former chief justice in the New Hampshire Supreme Court, and Daniel Popovici-Muller, would reverse a law passed last year which gives people 10 days to prove their residency and citizenship after they cast an “affidavit ballot” if they don’t have required documents with them at the polling location. Voters have long had the option to sign an affidavit attesting to their eligibility to vote even before the changes passed last year, with an established process for state officials to follow up and confirm the validity of those affidavits.
While advocates of the measure see it as a way to boost voter confidence, civil rights groups are pointing to testimony from state election officials that there is no evidence of widespread voter fraud and a survey from the University of New Hampshire which found 92% of Granite State voters were confident that votes were counted accurately in the 2022 election.
In a press conference Monday, representatives from organizations, including the New Hampshire Campaign for Voting Rights and the New Hampshire League of Women Voters, said the bill would disenfranchise eligible voters and make it easier for people to challenge an individual seeking to cast a ballot.
Henry Klementowicz, a senior staff attorney at the ACLU of New Hampshire, said more than 2,000 people in the state used an affidavit to register to vote in 2022. He said if the bill passes, more people might not be able to vote in the 2024 presidential election.
“We expect higher turnout, so those numbers could go up,” he said. “My best guess is that it could be thousands.”
Members of the House Election Law Committee deadlocked earlier this month in a 10-10 vote on whether to endorse the bill – a vote that fell entirely by party lines, with Republicans in support and Democrats against.
“All people who vote should bring ID and have ID – it’s not too much to ask,” said Republican Rep. Katherine Prudhomme-O’Brien at the hearing. “I don’t think it’s too cumbersome and I don’t think it would lead to voter suppression.”
But Elizabeth Correll, who’s served as a supervisor of the checklist in Concord for more than 15 years, said she’s frequently come across people who do not or are unable to present valid documents with them at the polling place.
“It happens every election,” she said.
Correll said she received guidance “time and time again, for years now” by the Secretary of State’s office to use the affidavit system because people initially turned away because they lacked identification will likely not return to vote.
“It’s effective and ensures [that people] can participate in the vote,” she said.
The bill heads to the House of Representatives for a vote on Wednesday.
