After the Supreme Court upheld one of the strictest voter ID laws in the land last month by a 6-3 ruling, it was rumored that it would have damaging effects on the outcome of last nights primary but effects were mild at best.
Aside from literally a buss full of nuns being turned away from the polls last night there were only scattered incidences of the ID law causing problems.
The Washington Post reports:
But there were few other such incidents reported across the state, which has one of the strictest laws in the country, requiring voters to have a photo ID issued by the state or federal government. After the Supreme Court upheld the law by a 6-3 ruling last month, there was widespread speculation that the ruling could hurt Barack Obama in the primary, since he was counting on strong turnout among African American voters in inner city neighborhoods in Gary and Indianapolis where many residents lack drivers' licenses. But Obama spokesman Bill Burton said this evening that the campaign had received only scattered complaints on the voter hotline it set up to deal with problems at the polls. He credited the campaign's aggressive voter outreach effort to make sure supporters had the ID they would need. (Residents without driver's licenses can obtain free picture IDs at department of motor vehicle branches.)
Bethany Derringer, a spokeswoman for the Indiana Secretary of State's office, said the office also had not received many complaints on a hotline it set up for today's vote. She said that should not come as a surprise, given that the state's voters have had to contend with the strict law since 2005. "We've had nothing earth-shattering," she said. "We've done extensive education on this."
All in all it seems that the voter ID law was a success -- my hope is that other states follow suite so we don't have more dogs, cats, and dead people voting for Democrats as has been the case for as long as I can remember.
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