What you need to know about the return of PA’s voter ID

HARRISBURG — This summer, Pennsylvania will see another battle over whether residents need photo identification before voting. And while new witnesses and new testimony will drive another decision on the constitutionality of the day, the crux of the controversy remains the same.

The law, passed in 2012, has broad support from Republican lawmakers who say it prevents voter fraud at the polls. Democrats and other critics say the laws intend to disenfranchise groups of left-leaning voters who may have difficulty getting an ID in order to quash Democrat votes.

The Department of State began offering new ID cards last year meant to provide ease of access. But concerns about preventing access to the polls continue in light of the plaintiff's claims that hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvania still may not have proper identification.

Here's what happened, what's next and who's involved in this year's voter ID case.

What happened

Last year, Commonwealth Court Judge Robert Simpson first heard and upheld the voter ID case that eventually got kicked up to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, and then handed back down to Simpson. Because the trial was in a presidential election year, attention focused on whether the law would be in effect.

Citing concern about disenfranchising those who did not have time or accessibility, Simpson gave a partial injunction, meaning the law was not in effect. At the November polls, and again in the May primary, voters were asked to show ID. If they did not have it, they could vote anyway.

What's next

This time around, focus is likely to fall to the constitutionality of the law. Testimony will include reports examining the state's outreach, how many individuals in the commonwealth have appropriate identification, and the legislature's basis for implementing the law.

Commonwealth Court  Judge Bernard L. McGinley will hear the case. Testimony is expected to take up the next two weeks.

If the law is upheld, Pennsylvania's voter ID rules would be among the strictest in the country. But it's far from the only type of law.

More than two dozen states around the country require some form of identification before voting, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Not all require a photo,  the way Pennsylvania's law does, with utility bills, registration cards or property tax statements serving as acceptable form of identification.

The players

The American Civil Liberties Union filed the case last year, with lead plaintiff Viviette Applewhite named in the case against the commonwealth. Advocacy groups including the NAACP and Pennsylvania League of Women Voters are also signed on.

Last year, lawyers from the Office of Attorney General argued the case, then headed by Linda Kelly, a Republican appointee of Gov. Tom Corbett.

Some wondered whether new Attorney General Kathleen Kane, a Democrat, would allow her office to remain involved, but the office will continue to defend the law.  Kane, in a statement Friday, said she believes the voter ID law is "on its face, constitutional. My concern with the Voter ID law has always been its implementation."

Contact Melissa Daniels at melissa@paindependent.com