BOISE, IDAHO (CBS2) — New legislation that would ban the use of affidavit voting was presented during a House State Affairs committee on Monday, February 13th, 2023.
This new proposal would eliminate the use of an affidavit on election day in Idaho and would require all voters to have a valid driver’s license or I.D. Card. Under the proposed bill, voters would no longer be able to self-identify themselves in the event they don’t have a proper I.D. or driver’s license on them.
Currently, under the Idaho code, voters can self-identify if their identification card is missing, lost, or expired.
This is done under oath and a verification process is necessary after the election. Rep. Joe Alfieri, the bill’s sponsor says the use of affidavits brings added costs to elections since they require verification after an election.
During Monday’s hearing, Rep. John Gannon said 1500 Idaho voters used an affidavit to vote in the last election.
He asked if there were any alternatives in mind for voters who may have the same issue when voting.
“What remedy or replacement idea do you have for the 1500 voters (or like voters) in the future who aren’t able to vote? Is there anything in this bill that will give them some sort of alternative if they show up to the polls and they lose their driver’s license?” Gannon said.
Alfieri responded by saying that an identification card is needed for various things, and voting shouldn’t be an exception.
“We require identification for virtually everything that we do, to get on an airplane to buy pharmaceutical items, I don’t see any reason why we should make an exception for voting,” Alfieri said.
When pressed on it further, he said he didn’t have the full details on that but could provide that once the bill gets a full hearing.
The bill now heads to a full hearing in the House State Affairs committee before it can be passed to the house floor.
