New law creates unnecessary hassles
Some students may soon want fake IDs for more than getting into Five Points bars underage.
South Carolina fake IDs in particular could become a hot commodity for out-of-state students wishing to have their votes counted in the state. Because if the law attempting to reduce voter fraud is approved, out-of-state students would probably have a harder time getting into a South Carolina voting booth than a bar.
The South Carolina Voter ID Law would force residents to present a valid South Carolina ID to vote in the state. And CarolinaCards don't count. Neither does a fake ID, we were just kidding. But we also don't support the stipulations of the bill.
Either out-of-state students will be forced to cast absentee ballots for their home states or they will have to obtain a South Carolina driver's license or a U.S. passport, which costs $135 and can take more than a month to process.
Students must also have a South Carolina permanent residence. In other words, they can't live on campus. These hassles would be eliminated if the law simply allowed USC students to present their CarolinaCards as a valid ID.
The law intentionally makes it more difficult for out-of-state students to vote in local and national elections — state Republicans know college students tend to vote more liberally than the rest of the state. The more northern, liberal votes they can exclude from South Carolina tallies, the better off they are in their seats.
Of the eight states, including South Carolina, that have this law, five of them allow student IDs. All we're asking is for South Carolina to do so as well.
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