Supreme Court allows Wisconsin voter ID law to stand

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to rule on a challenge to a Wisconsin voter ID law, a surprise decision that will allow the 2011 law to go into effect later this year.

The law, passed by Republican legislators under Gov. Scott Walker, requires voters to provide photo identification at the election booth or when requesting an absentee ballot. Last year, the high court blocked the law from taking effect before November’s general election while it considered the merits of the legal challenge.

Wisconsin has not enforced what it calls the “eminently reasonable” voter ID law since a February 2012 primary. The American Civil Liberties Union and allied groups challenged the law and a federal judge overturned it last year. But the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago later reversed the decision and allowed the law to stand. The Supreme Court’s dismissal of the case on Monday leaves the 7th Circuit’s ruling in force.

“This is great news for Wisconsin voters,” said Walker in a statement. “As we’ve said, this is a common sense reform that protects the integrity of our voting process, making it easy to vote and hard to cheat.”

But the League of Women Voters of Wisconsin, which had opposed the law, expressed disappointment. “The problem with our elections is that not enough people vote in them,” said executive director Andrea Kaminski. “The last thing we need is laws that erect barriers for people who have been good voters for decades.”

Early voting began on Monday for an April 7 state election. But because the state has already mailed out absentee ballots—without any notification of the ID requirement—the law won’t be enforced until after the current election.

“Absentee ballots are already in the hands of voters, therefore, the law cannot be implemented for the April 7 election,” said Wisconsin Attorney General Brad Schimel in a statement. “The voter ID law will be in place for future elections—this decision is final.” Wisconsinites will elect local officials and a state Supreme Court justice on the upcoming ballot.

Republicans argue the voter ID requirement is needed to reduce election fraud, while Democrats say fraud is extremely rare and ID laws discriminate against the poor, minorities, and the elderly.

The U.S. Supreme Court upheld a voter ID law from Indiana in 2008, but stricter ID laws from other states have faced their own challenges.

The justices did not comment on why they turned away the Wisconsin case Monday, but they could be waiting to take up a similar voter ID case from Texas, now pending before the 5th Circuit.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.