Missouri Supreme Court to decide whether photo ID requirements inhibit voters

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - A group suing Missouri claims the state is silencing some voters through restrictive laws. The Missouri Supreme Court will decide whether voters should have to show a government photo ID.

Before a panel of Missouri Supreme Court judges on Wednesday, the Missouri NAACP, ACLU and several others argued to dismiss a nearly 4-year-old law. This case challenges a 2022 law that requires a government ID to cast a vote and restricts several other parts of the voting process. A ruling in this case is expected in a few weeks.

Denise Liberman with the Missouri Voter Protection Coalition represents several Missourians who had difficulty getting the right kind of government-issued ID to cast a vote because of clerical issues and disabilities. In the 2022 election, 116 ballots were thrown out for not following the law.

“It is not whether someone is, through Herculean measures, able to ultimately climb that mountain and overcome those challenges; what the law prohibits is abridgement or burdens on the right to vote,” Lieberman said.

However, Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway said their argument is weak because the people named in the lawsuit were able to ultimately get the required ID and cast their votes.

“Look, the goal here is to make sure that every Missourian who wants to vote gets to vote, but any Missourian or anyone from outside Missouri who wants to cheat can’t cheat,” Hanaway said.