5 controversial voting laws in the US, from Minnesota's vouching system to noncitizen voting
2. North Dakota
North Dakota, which has three electoral college votes and elects one at-large representative to the U.S. House of Representatives, bears the distinction of being the only state where voters are not required to formally register at all.
Because North Dakota state IDs reflect a noncitizen's status and voter records flag noncitizens to ensure only U.S. citizens vote, eligible voters who are over the age of 18 and have resided in their voting precinct for at least 30 days prior to an election can simply appear at the polls with an acceptable state ID that includes name, current residential address and date of birth.
North Dakota has operated without formal voter registration since 1951, exempting it from the federal requirements imposed on every other state by the National Voter Registration Act of 1993. Though some have raised questions about list maintenance or verification compared to registration systems, the practice is generally viewed as workable in the sparsely populated, largely rural state of approximately 800,000 people.
Though North Dakota was one of the first states to establish voter registration before abolishing it, attempts to re-enact it have been repeatedly turned down by legislative action or gubernatorial veto.
An explanatory pamphlet issued by former North Dakota Secretary of State Alvin Jaeger acknowledged that voter fraud is possible in the state, but noted that widespread incidents have never occurred. Regarding whether voter fraud is also possible in states with voter registration, the pamphlet said: "Yes — absolutely — and we hear about examples of it during every election season."
Jon Brown is a reporter for The Christian Post. Send news tips to jon.brown@christianpost.com
