Constitutional Voter ID Wins in Wisconsin

Wisconsin's decade-old requirement that voters show a photo ID is now permanently part of the state constitution after voters approved the referendum question at the bottom of the April 1 ballot.

Decision Desk HQ projected the referendum question passed about 20 minutes after polls closed. With 84% of the vote reported as of 9:30 p.m., about 63% of voters approved the question, while around 37% voted against it.

Republicans placed the question on the ballot in hopes of protecting the law from being overturned by a liberal-controlled state Supreme Court. While the court does not currently have a case challenging voter ID, it will now be much harder for justices to declare the law unconstitutional in the future.

Raising the law to the constitution also makes it difficult for Democrats to get rid of voter ID if they eventually gain a majority in the Legislature. They'd have to go through the amendment process again to take it back out of the constitution — passing the change two sessions in a row, then putting it to voters.

Supporters of the voter ID law argue it increases confidence in elections and photo identification is required in other everyday situations, like checking into a hotel or buying alcohol. They also point to the law's popularity among voters.

A poll conducted by the Marquette University Law School in late February found 77% of voters in Wisconsin backed the law, including a majority of Democrats. Of the 864 voters surveyed, 73% supported raising the law to the constitution.

Opponents argue voter ID is a solution in search of a problem. Voting fraud is extremely rare in Wisconsin, especially cases of impersonation. They argue the law can discourage voters from going the polls when they're not sure if their ID will be accepted.

Some groups, including low-income voters, college voters and voters with disabilities, are more likely to be affected by the law than other voters who can easily show a Wisconsin driver's license.

While the photo ID requirement is now part of the constitution, legislators will still be able to make tweaks to the state law itself. That includes establishing acceptable forms of ID, rules for provisional ballots and any additional exceptions.

The referendum question on the April ballot received far less attention than races at the top of the ticket for state Supreme Court and state superintendent.

The state Democratic and Republican parties were heavily involved in persuading voters how to vote on referendums in 2024, especially for more obscure changes to the state constitution like weakening the governor's control over federal funding.

Last year, voters rejected those two questions about the governor's authority and approved three others related to elections, including a change intended to prevent noncitizens from voting in local elections as some U.S. cities have allowed, and a ban on outside funds for election administration.

This time around, the Republican Party of Wisconsin sent mailers that featured a photo of President Donald Trump, who is "counting on you to keep our elections secure" by voting 'yes.' Liberal-leaning and voting rights groups signed an open letter encouraging a 'no' vote.

Constitutional amendments must be passed by the Legislature twice in a row to appear on voters' ballots. Wisconsin does not allow citizens to collect signatures and place a question on the ballot, through Democrats have pushed for that process.

Several constitutional amendment proposals have been passed once, and if lawmakers decide to pass them again this session, the questions could appear during elections as early as 2026.

Those include prohibiting government agencies from closing places of worship during a state of emergency, placing new limits on the governor's partial veto power and effectively banning affirmative action programs in public entities.