Supreme Court Allows New Hampshire to Reject Student IDs in Elections

The U.S. Supreme Court has allowed New Hampshire officials to reject student ID cards as a valid form of identification when voters cast ballots. (Annabelle Gordon/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday allowed New Hampshire officials to reject student ID cards as a valid form of identification when voters cast ballots in next month’s midterm elections.

A lower court judge previously ruled that state officials improperly went further than a new law restricting the use of student IDs to obtain a ballot, ruling that officials must still consider student IDs with other evidence when voters have no other way to verify their identity.

But the Supreme Court challenged the judge’s intervention so close to the elections.

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The high court said orders issued too close to an election can confuse voters, an idea known as the Purcell principle. The court cited recent legal exchanges over Missouri redistricting maps.

“In this case, the district court did not point to anything that would warrant a departure from this principle,” the majority wrote in its opinion.

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented, saying the rule did not apply since the lower court judge was helping to ensure the public received accurate information.

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The High Court said orders issued too close to an election can cause confusion among voters. (Graeme Sloan for The Washington Post/Getty Images)

“When a federal court determines that misrepresentations were made regarding a state’s election rules, an injunction prohibiting that conduct does not contribute to public confusion, it avoids that problem,” Jackson wrote. “I would not disrupt a clearly justifiable order from a federal court to ensure that the public receives accurate information about a state’s election processes,” she wrote.

This comes after Gov. Kelly Ayotte signed House Bill 323 into law in April, removing student ID cards from the list of IDs expressly considered valid for obtaining a ballot. The law came into force on June 2. After the law took effect, New Hampshire Secretary of State David Scanlan provided guidance to election officials regarding the change, and several trainings were held.

“New Hampshire has a responsibility to protect the integrity of its elections and ensure that election laws are enforced as written,” New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella, a Republican, said in a statement.

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented, saying the rule did not apply since the lower court judge was helping to ensure the public received accurate information. (AP Photo/Matt Ramey)

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“The Supreme Court’s decision is an important victory for our efforts to defend these laws and prevent last-minute court decisions from creating uncertainty for voters and election officials. We will continue to defend New Hampshire’s election laws and the safeguards they provide,” he continued.

The Supreme Court’s decision is not final on the merits of the case, and the underlying litigation regarding the law remains ongoing.