The 2023 municipal election created a first for many North Carolina voters: the legal requirement to show photo identification. The Republican-majority North Carolina legislature passed the measure five years ago, but lawsuits ensued and persisted, delaying implementation until this year.
Voters must show one of 12 forms of photo identification. A person who does not have an acceptable ID can obtain one at the local Board of Elections office. Without proper identification, a voter can still cast a provisional ballot.
At the polls in Western North Carolina, voter response to the new law was mixed.
Pauline McDowell, an 82-year-old retiree from Waynesville, said she had no problem with the new voting requirement.
"I don't have a problem with that at all," McDowell said after she cast her ballot Tuesday afternoon. "I think if I'm willing to vote, then I ought to be willing to let somebody know who I am. That's not a problem."
Another voter, Sharon Isselhardt, said she, too, was pleased by the voter ID law.
Isselhardt, a 74-year-old retiree, said she moved to North Carolina from Indiana, where she was regularly asked to provide identification when she voted.
"I love that," Isselhardt said. "When I first moved here and we went to go vote, and they didn't ask for any ID at all -- and it's like, anybody can come in and say they're me...I was very glad to hear they're asking for that now. I think that's just really important."
Rex Schaberg, a resident of Weaverville, disagreed.
"I think it disadvantages people who really need to be represented. I think it's unnecessary," he said. "We've gotten by without it for 100 plus years, and every time anyone has alleged voter fraud, they've never been able to show any evidence. So it seems to me like the system that we have is perfectly adequate without encumbering it."
Ken Joseph of Sylva said he also doesn’t love the new voter ID law.
“I think it restricts people that can't go get IDs from voting. Currently right now if you walk in here and try to get a driver's license, it's months they're not taking appointments. So I think that makes it more difficult and voting should be easier,” said Joseph.
He said he votes in every election.
“It's important to affect your own community, especially a small community where I see immediate effects of voting,” Joseph said.
Election workers check to see if the picture on the ID reasonably resembles the person, according to the State Board of Elections. An address on the photo identification does not have to match the voter registration records.
