US Supreme Court Case on Merits of Photo ID Laws Previewed in Election Law Journal

PRLog (Press Release) – Jan 03, 2008 – New Rochelle, NY--The Supreme Court is poised to decide perhaps the most important election law case since Bush v. Gore, according to Edward B. Foley, writing in the upcoming issue of Election Law Journal. Uncorrected page proofs of the case preview written by Foley, Professor of Law at the Ohio State University Moritz College of Law and Director of “Election Law @ Moritz” program, are available on the Election Law Journal website, www.liebertpub.com/elj

The case is a challenge to Indiana’s law requiring voters to present photographic identification before being able to cast a vote at the polls. In a pair of consolidated cases to be heard on January 9 (Crawford v. Marion County Elections Board and Indiana Democratic Party v. Rokita) the Court will decide whether the Indiana photo ID requirement is constitutional. According to Foley, the case presents difficult and politically sensitive issues that could well divide the Roberts Court.

Underlying the issues before the Supreme Court is a conflict between some who believe voter fraud at polling places is widespread and others who believe photo ID requirements discourage many eligible people from voting.

“Some would say that on the evidence, both of these problems are pretty rare,” says Daniel H. Lowenstein, Co-Editor of Election Law Journal and Professor of Law at UCLA School of Law. “But for many activists, scholars, and journalists with an intense interest in this issue, Professor Foley’s case preview carefully lays out the arguments on both sides of the case and explains various ways the Supreme Court might decide the constitutionality of the photo ID requirement.”

   Foley’s preview continues ELJ’s tradition of giving academics, legal practitioners, government officials, and other ELJ readers a comprehensive and readable overview of major election law cases being heard by the Supreme Court.
Election Law Journal is an authoritative peer-reviewed journal published quarterly in print and online by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. Co-edited by Daniel H. Lowenstein, UCLA Law School, and Richard Hasen, Loyola Law School, the journal covers the emerging specialty of election law for practicing attorneys, election administrators, political professionals, legal scholars, and social scientists. It covers election law on the federal, state, and local levels in the U.S. and in 75 countries around the world. A complete table of contents and a free sample issue may be viewed online at www.liebertpub.com/elj

   Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and biomedical research, and law, including Biotechnology Law Report, Gaming Law Review, and Environmental Justice. Its biotechnology trade magazine, Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News (GEN), was the first in its field and is today the industry’s most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm’s 60 journals, books, and newsmagazines is available at www.liebertpub.com

Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. 140 Huguenot St., New Rochelle, NY 10801-5215
Phone: (914) 740-2100 (800) M-LIEBERT Fax: (914) 740-2101 www.liebertpub.com