Ford Files Voter ID Bill - Legislation calls for clean and fair elections

Senator John Ford, R-Bartlesville, has introduced legislation that will help protect the integrity of the election system in Oklahoma.

Senate Bill 4 requires any individual that votes in person to show “proof of identity,” which can be a document that includes the voter’s name, a picture of the voter, and is issued by the United States, the State of Oklahoma, or a federally recognized Indian Tribe or Nation. In instances where an individual does not have any of these methods of identification, the voter may show their county issued Voter ID card.

“Valid identification is required in our daily activities, such as writing a check, boarding a plane or even getting a library card in some states,” said Ford. “So when it comes to voters deciding who will run our state and our nation and what laws will govern our citizens, it is prudent to verify the identification of voters at the polls.”

“During the election season last fall, we heard of the many fraudulent registrations being conducted,” Ford continued. “It is critical that we prevent this from happening in our state.”

Although voter fraud has not been wide spread up to this point in Oklahoma, Ford believes it is important to take these steps to protect from future fraud. In a report published by pollster John Zogby, it was reported that 9% of Americans don’t believe their votes are counted accurately. This number increases to 13% among Hispanics and 18% among African Americans.