Adam Schiff: Voter ID ‘Is Another Way to Simply Try to Suppress the Vote’

Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA) has argued that requiring voter identification is “another way to simply try to suppress the vote,” pushing back on polling that shows broad public support for voter ID laws.

Schiff made the remarks Sunday during an appearance on ABC’s “This Week.”

Host Jon Karl asked whether Democrats could support a compromise requiring photo identification in order to vote.

Schiff Blames GOP for Election Distrust

Responding to Karl’s question, Schiff suggested Republicans had manufactured distrust in U.S. elections and were now using that distrust to justify stricter voting rules.

“So, you know, Jonathan, what you’ve just asked is essentially, Republicans have created distrust of the elections by making claims of non-existent fraud in the elections,” the Democrat senator claimed.

“And shouldn’t we use the distrust they’ve created in order to enact a voter suppression law, which is the SAVE Act, which would require people to have a birth certificate or passport documents that millions of Americans don’t have?

“Almost half the country doesn’t have a passport.”

Broad Public Support For Voter ID

Karl pressed Schiff by citing polling data showing strong bipartisan backing for voter identification requirements.

“But in one recent Pew poll, 83% of adults support requiring photo I.D. to vote.

“71% of Democrats favor requiring photo ID.

”Is that something that you can support?

“And if not, why not?”

Despite that support, Schiff maintained that voter ID laws would disenfranchise eligible voters.

“It’s still going to be something that disenfranchizes people that don’t have the proper real ID, driver’s license ID, that don’t have the ID necessary to vote, even though they are citizens,” Schiff claimed.

“This is another way to simply try to suppress the vote.

“And the last thing I think we want to do is discourage more people, more citizens, from voting while they’re attacking those same elections, while they’re trying to do away with absentee ballot voting, while they’re trying to do away with being able to register to vote through the DMV or by the mail.

“So it’s part of the broader disenfranchisement effort.

“And no, I don’t think that’s the right direction.”

WATCH:

Debate Over Election Integrity Continues

The exchange highlights the ongoing divide between Democrats and Republicans over election integrity and access to voting.

Republicans, including President Donald Trump and congressional allies, have argued that voter ID requirements are a commonsense safeguard to ensure only eligible citizens cast ballots.

Democrats, meanwhile, continue to frame such measures as barriers that could discourage participation among lawful voters.

However, with most Americans supporting voter ID requirements, it raises questions about why the Democrats are so desperate to block such measures.

With Congress weighing election-related legislation and states continuing to debate voting rules, the dispute over voter identification remains a central flashpoint in national politics.

READ MORE – Fetterman Sides with Republicans on Voter ID Requirements