Legislation that would require Mississippi voters to show identification at the polls found mixed results Thursday at the Capitol, and its chances for survival appear slim.
A bill requiring most voters to show photo identification before casting ballots advanced in the Senate. Members of a key House committee later argued over a similar measure for almost two hours but took no action, and the committee’s leader did not commit to holding a future vote on the bill.
House Apportionment and Elections Committee Chairman Tommy Reynolds, a co-author of House Bill 430, said he wants more “unanimity” among committee members before deciding whether it will survive.
Voter identification measures have failed repeatedly in the Democrat-controlled Mississippi House, where some legislators question its rationale and worry it will intimidate older African Americans once threatened for trying to vote.
Magnolia Tribune
