Voter ID Nightmare: Up to 300,000 Wisconsin Voters Could Be Barred from Polls Thanks to Scott Walker

On Tuesday, voters head to the polls in Wisconsin for both the Democratic and Republican primaries as one of the country’s toughest voting restrictions takes effect. Wisconsin’s controversial and restrictive voter ID law could prevent some 300,000 registered voters from casting ballots. According to Wisconsin’s strict new requirements, voters must now have a governmentissued photo ID to cast a ballot. While supporters say the law prevents fraud, critics note 9 percent of the Wisconsin electorate could be disenfranchised, a disproportionate number of them poor and people of color. The voter ID law is just one of several new voting restrictions passed by Republicans in Wisconsin since 2011. The state Legislature also eliminated early voting hours on nights and weekends and made it nearly impossible for grassroots groups to conduct voter registration drives. We speak with Ari Berman, author of "Give Us the BallotThe Modern Struggle for Voting Rights in America." His new piece for The Nation is called "Wisconsin’s VoterID Law Could Block 300,000 Registered Voters from the Polls."

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