Court: State ID law is a ‘minimal, reasonable, and nondiscriminatory restriction’

ATLANTA – The Georgia Supreme Court on Monday upheld a state law that requires voters to show valid photo identification before casting a ballot.

“It has been interesting and educating to watch our judicial system in action,” Sen. Cecil Staton, R-Macon, said in a news release. “I am grateful for the justices’ ruling and grateful that the legal challenges are over for this common sense legislation. We can now move forward knowing that voting in Georgia is safer than before, simply because voters must prove who they are with common identification.”

Stanton in 2005 and 2006 sponsored the identification legislation at the root of the legal battle. The law has been subjected to a number of legal challenges since its passage.

“As did virtually every other court that considered this issue, we find the photo ID requirement as implemented in the 2006 Act to be a minimal, reasonable, and nondiscriminatory restriction which is warranted by the important regulatory interests of preventing voter fraud,” the court wrote. The court voted 6-1 in favor of upholding the law.

Under the law, voters must show one of six forms of identification, such as a passport or a driver’s license, even if it is expired.

“Today’s ruling by the Georgia Supreme Court to uphold our photo ID law for in-person voting is a victory for our state’s election security,” Secretary of State Brian Kemp, a Republican, said in a news release. “Photo ID plays a vital role in ensuring that no vote cast by an eligible Georgian is erased by a fraudulent ballot.”

The Democratic Party of Georgia filed the lawsuit.