Nevada voters approve photo ID requirement to begin in 2028

Nevadans volition request photograph recognition to ballot successful idiosyncratic starting successful 2028, aft voters gave last support to a law amendment that besides volition enforce caller recognition requirements connected radical voting by mail.

Ballot Question 7 passed with astir 62% of the vote, according to unofficial authorities returns disposable Wednesday. The effect delivers a triumph to Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo and different supporters who argued that the requirements would fortify assurance successful elections, portion opponents pass they volition make caller barriers for eligible voters.

The amendment establishes the recognition requirements but leaves a question unanswered: What happens to idiosyncratic who arrives astatine the polls without an acceptable ID?

Under the measure, radical voting successful idiosyncratic volition person to amusement photograph identification. Mail voters volition person to supply the past 4 digits of their Nevada driver’s licence fig or, if they bash not person one, their Social Security number. Voters with neither volition usage a fig issued by their region clerk.

Voters archetypal approved Question 7 successful 2024, erstwhile astir 73% supported it. Because Nevada requires citizen-initiated law amendments to triumph support successful 2 even-numbered predetermination years, this year’s ballot was the last measurement toward adding the requirements to the authorities constitution.

Opponents accidental the amendment addresses nary demonstrated occupation with wide elector fraud and adds hurdles for radical who bash not person an acceptable ID.

André Wade, authorities manager of Silver State Equality, said those hurdles could see replacing a mislaid recognition card, updating a sanction oregon making a travel to the Department of Motor Vehicles. Even remembering to bring an ID becomes an further information for casting a ballot successful person, helium said.

“We don’t person an contented with voting and (preventing) elector fraud, and each this volition bash is make barriers for radical to vote,” Wade told the Sun. “To adhd this furniture for radical to person recognition to ballot is simply unnecessary, and we’re acrophobic that it means that less radical are going to beryllium capable to formed the vote.”

Repair the Vote PAC sponsored Question 7, with enactment from the Nevada Republican Party, Lombardo and President Donald Trump. The Nevada-based Keystone Corp., which describes itself arsenic a “pro-business governmental advocacy organization,” besides backed the amendment. The Nevada Voter ID Coalition, co-chaired by Lombardo, helped rise funds for the initiative.

“Last night, the voters crossed Nevada overwhelmingly voted to necessitate an ID erstwhile voting,” Dave Gibbs, president of Repair the Vote, said Wednesday.

Gibbs thanked Lombardo and the volunteers who collected signatures to spot the measurement connected the 2024 ballot and campaigned for its transition this year.

Lombardo has agelong pushed for elector recognition requirements. His effort to walk a elector ID measure successful the 2023 legislative league stalled successful the Democratic-controlled Legislature.

Lombardo, however, vetoed a measure successful June 2025 that combined elector ID requirements with expanded ballot driblet container access. Lombardo argued that the authorities did not use recognition checks consistently to in-person and message voters oregon adequately code his ballot-security concerns. Under that bill, a message ballot could beryllium accepted based connected a matching signature without checking the identifying fig the elector provided.

Lombardo’s run told the Sun that his extremity is to marque it simpler for eligible Nevadans to ballot portion ensuring their ballots are secure.

Organizations opposing Question 7 included the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada, Battle Born Progress, Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada Action and Silver State Equality.

In an interrogation with the Sun past month, U.S. Rep. Dina Titus, D-Nev., said the authorities did not person a elector fraud occupation that justified the measure. She warned it would load seniors and others who whitethorn not person a driver’s licence oregon recognition card.

Fellow Democrats U.S. Rep. Steven Horsford, U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto and Gov.-elect Aaron Ford besides told the Sun they opposed the amendment.

For Wade, a cardinal interest is however the requirements volition impact radical whose recognition needs to beryllium replaced oregon updated. That could see radical who precocious joined and changed their names, arsenic good arsenic transgender and nonbinary residents whose recognition does not bespeak their existent sanction oregon appearance.

He besides raised concerns astir message voters who whitethorn beryllium reluctant to constitute identifying digits from their driver’s licence oregon Social Security fig connected predetermination paperwork. Those voters could consciousness compelled to ballot successful idiosyncratic instead, helium said, creating different obstacle for radical who cannot easy scope a polling location.

Wade likened the requirements to humanities restrictions connected voting, including canvass taxes that targeted African Americans aft Reconstruction.

It volition instrumentality respective predetermination cycles and probe to recognize the amendment’s effects, helium said. Meantime, helium believes extended elector acquisition by the caput of authorities could assistance radical navigate the caller requirements.

“It does look common-sensible that you request an ID to thrust oregon acquisition a weapon oregon immoderate the illustration whitethorn be,” Wade said. “But with voting, we don’t person that, person ne'er needed that, and erstwhile we person needed it, it’s been for instances wherever radical are voting for the archetypal clip oregon registering.”

— Sun newsman Ava Chatlosh contributed to this story.