Amid changes to Wisconsin’s voter ID provisions, UW-Madison has taken steps to expand the ways in which students who don’t have Wisconsin driver’s licenses or IDs can vote, according to a Wednesday university press release.
Following the Government Accountability Board’s approval in 2012, UW-Madison has offered a free voter ID card called Thiscard to students. Because students cannot use their student IDs to vote, many from out of state depend on Thiscard to vote.
According to the release, polling data taken from the last presidential election suggests no more than 6,400 out-of-state students would have needed Thiscard to vote—almost half of UW-Madison’s nonresident student population.
Efforts to expand the availability of Thiscard to students include offering the voter ID cards when students pick up their student IDs. This would include when new and transfer students get their student IDs at orientation.
Other ideas include placing volunteers outside student polling sites to check if students have all required materials to vote before going inside. UW-Madison also plans to work with City Clerk’s office to designate student volunteers as election officials to get them inside polling places, according to the release.
