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WV House advances voter ID bill on party-line vote

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginians would be required to show photo ID at their polling places before they can vote, under a Republican bill advancing through the House of Delegates.

The voter ID bill passed the House Judiciary Committee after nearly five hours of discussion and debate Wednesday on a strict party-line vote, with every Republican voting in favor and every Democrat opposed.

The bill (HB 4013) would require voters to show some form of government-issued photo ID to vote. Acceptable IDs would include a driver’s license or state ID card, a passport, a state or government employee ID card, a student ID, a military ID or a state concealed-weapons permit.

Thirty-three states have voter ID laws in effect. Three others — Arkansas, Missouri and Pennsylvania — have passed voter ID laws, but they are on hold, pending court challenges.

Voter ID laws generally fall into two categories, strict — where the voter must show ID or take some sort of action after election day to have their vote counted — and non-strict — which grants greater allowances for not showing an ID.

The proposed West Virginia law would be non-strict…

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