Voter ID laws go mainstream.

• Author: London, Herbert
• Position: Law & Justice

IT IS BECOMING increasingly clear that the viability of this democratic republic is dependent on confidence that election results are fair and incontrovertible. When there is doubt, when the vote is tainted, cynicism is unleashed and our institutions are called into question. Today, voter fraud has the potential to determine who is elected. It begins with registration vulnerabilities, where many states require no proof of identification, and continues with candidate's petitions of registered voters needed to get on the ballot. Voter registration fraud leads to Election Day fraud, yet such allegations rarely are investigated and perpetrators often are let off with little or no consequences.

For instance, despite hundreds of allegations referred to state police by election officials, and at least 70 referred by state police to the Virginia Commonwealth's attorney after the 2008 election, only one voter fraud case appears to have been investigated thoroughly. That case took four years to prepare. After the 2012 indictment of 10 convicted felons who illegally registered to vote and subsequently voted while knowing they were ineligible, the Commonwealth's attorney, Michael N. Herring, said that he would seek no jail time for them. Herring also dismissed the feasibility of identifying, or prosecuting, the paid registration solicitors who recruited the 10.

To prevent elections from being influenced by substantial irregularities, valid and uniform procedures for voting are needed across the country. At the moment, too many Americans are cynical about elections because of the reported instances of voter fraud and election irregularities. It is time to restore confidence in the voting system. Taking steps to do so should begin with a valid voter photo identification as one of the most important components of those reforms. This, though, is an institutional reform--important, but not dispositive.

The nation needs cultural reform, a restored belief that our vote makes a difference, that we are not being held hostage to election bandits stealing our birthright. Elections as a key feature of our system of government must be pristine. When the public believes votes are for sale, cynicism enters the electoral equation and a loss of political confidence results. As a consequence, we see ourselves as federalists fighting to restore the essential element of our political system and to do so while the system still can be saved.

Voting is an essential way self-government is expressed in this democratic republic. When we, the American people, vote and the results are tallied, there should be confidence in the belief that our collective voice is heard fairly and unequivocally. However, the rules for ensuring voter integrity in elections are not administered uniformly.

The states' legitimate obligation to prevent election fraud has to be balanced with a reasonable exceptions process for individuals who can establish that they left their ID at home, or that their wallet indeed was stolen. Many states now can have greater confidence in verifying the identity of voters by referencing the state driver's license registry because of...