A Road Map for Challenging Voter Restriction Laws after Crawford

Abstract:     
The Supreme Court in Crawford v. Marion County Election Board rejected a facial challenge under the Equal Protection Clause to Indiana’s voter-ID law. But despite upholding the law, the Crawford opinions together set out a clear roadmap for challenging any “evenhanded restrictions” on the right to vote. This short piece examines that roadmap.

I start by giving a bit of background on the Indiana law and describing the law’s operation. Next I mine two key opinions in Crawford for clues to a successful challenge of voter-ID laws. Finally, I argue that Crawford gives us three imperatives for successful challenges, and I offer some thoughts on each.

Number of Pages in PDF File: 10

Keywords: Vote, Voter ID, Crawford, Equal Protection, Supreme Court

Accepted Paper Series