UNH students scramble to vote after student ID ban. Town clerk explains law.

DURHAM — Massachusetts native Azrael Ross' plan to vote in New Hampshire for the midterm election Nov. 3 is now up in the air.

The University of New Hampshire graduate student now studies and lives in the Granite State. Ross hoped to use her university-issued student identification card in the Nov. 3 election, but she won't be able to do so after the U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling to uphold the state law banning the use of school IDs to obtain a ballot.

"I don't know anything about the Massachusetts midterms right now because I've been around people who are from New Hampshire," Ross said in a Monday Oct. 26 interview. "I don't feel like I have enough time now to go back and vote and participate as I should. It's tough because I thought I would be guaranteed an ability to vote here."

Ross said she has been paying attention to New Hampshire's races for the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate seats on the ballot, but not those taking place south of the state line.

Student IDs were barred at polling places in June, when Republican-backed House Bill 323 was signed by Gov. Kelly Ayotte. The law was enforced during New Hampshire's September primary election, though it was being challenged in a federal lawsuit by the Coalition for Open Democracy, a Concord-based voting rights organization.

In early October, federal Judge Joseph Laplante ruled the law could stay in effect, but that New Hampshire Secretary of State David Scanlan should not have outright prohibited student IDs during voter registration.

The U.S. Supreme Court overruled Laplante in a Thursday, Oct. 22 decision, less than two weeks before Election Day, arguing "lower federal courts should ordinarily not alter the election rules on the eve of an election," according to the order. Associate Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson was the lone dissenting justice.

Durham town clerk explains how students can vote

With the U.S. Supreme Court having spoken, Durham town clerk Rachel Deane stated the general election will proceed similarly to how the state primary ran, though with a larger student turnout expected.

"Durham is incredibly focused on making sure that anyone who is truly qualified to vote gets to vote," she said.

Out-of-state students must bring proof of identity, domicile, age and citizenship to the polls in order to vote. An out-of-state driver's license suffices for the age and identity portion, while a rental or lease agreement or utility bill can be shown to prove domicile in Durham. The New Hampshire secretary of state has posted all the requirements . UNH has also posted voting information for students.

Deane noted election officials will accept students who provide electronic proof of domicile by showing their on-campus housing assignment through the University of New Hampshire's Webcat portal.

A U.S. passport or birth certificate is accepted for proof of citizenship. Students without either can fill out a qualified voter affidavit in their place attesting to their citizenship.

Volunteers in Durham's election will be trained for all potential voting scenarios involving students.

"We're prepared to assist any student that has no other form of ID to troubleshoot how they can actually proceed with voting," Deane said.

Students say law is making it 'complicated' to vote

Durham officials said students can vote with government identification and proof of New Hampshire domicile. But students interviewed at UNH aren't confident most of their peers will make it to cast ballots.

Ross and members of her social work program cohort commented on the high court's decision.

"At that point, it's so complicated to even be able to get to vote, and now they're taking away your ability to use the student ID," said Vivian Eisenmann. "It's so complex to be able to do something that we've been told is one of our rights, but they're making it impossible. They can't take away the right to vote but they can take away all the accessible options to vote."

"There's never any situation where we should be reducing people's accessibility to voting. It should always be about increasing people's accessibility to voting," Elle Legard added.

The student voter identification issue has been debated and litigated in New Hampshire for years.

Durham Town Administrator Todd Selig began his tenure in town in 2001. The "highly politicized" topic was spoken about before he arrived at Town Hall, Selig said.

"It's something that I think, generally speaking, on the Republican side, they want to be more strict in terms of allowing college students to vote in the communities where they're attending college," he said. "On the Democratic side, they tend to be more welcoming in making it easier for college students to vote in the community they're attending college."

What is turnout in Durham expected to be next week?

Deane, Durham's town clerk, anticipates higher turnout at Oyster River High School for the Nov. 3 midterms than during the November 2024 general election.

"It's so hard to predict because these elections seem to be different every year," she said.

Two years ago, over 8,300 votes were cast, with the town reporting nearly 2,500 same-day voter registrations, according to the town.

Legard and fellow UNH graduate student Max Murdach will be offering students free rides to the polls on Election Day.

Murdach said he works six jobs on and off in addition to his studies.

"I have a very busy schedule but I have the offer out there to people," Murdach said.

During the primary election, Legard estimated she drove about 20 students to Oyster River to vote. The master's student is preparing to encounter students who hoped to vote but may not have the necessary identification.

"Why are we limiting students' access to influencing policies that dictate how we live and exist in this community? It's just wild," she said.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: UNH students scramble to vote after student ID ban. Town clerk explains law.