The constitutionality of law is now being challenged before the state Supreme Court, where statistician Bernard Siskin testified on Monday that the measure would disenfranchise hundreds of thousands of registered voters, disproportionately affecting “Democrats and members of minority groups.” “By his calculations, Democrats are three times as likely as Republicans and minorities are about twice as likely as whites to lack a valid ID,” the Huffington Post’s Saki Knafo reported.

In December, Republican strategist Scott Tranter acknowledged that “a lot of us are campaign professionals and we want to do everything we can to help our sides. Sometimes we think that’s voter ID, sometimes we think that’s longer lines, whatever it may be.” The Romney campaign’s Wisconsin co-chair, state Sen. Alberta Darling (R), also suggested that the Massachusetts governor would have won Wisconsin but for the fact that the state’s voter ID law was declared unconstitutional by a state court.

 

Although the laws’ supporters claim that they are necessary to combat in-person voter fraud, a voter is more likely to be struck by lightning than to commit fraud. One study found that 0.0002 percent of votes are the product of such fraud.

via Top Pennsylvania Republican Admits Voter ID Helped Suppress Obama Voters | ThinkProgress.

There’s no question what and who motivates these laws.  It’s laughable to think there’s anything going on here other than politics-by-other-means.

No need to convince people you are right when you can deny them a vote on the topic.