A North Carolina judge has rejected a Republican request to block students and school staff from using digital ID cards to vote.
Wake County Superior Court Judge Keith Gregory on Thursday denied a temporary restraining order filed by the Republican National Committee (RNC) and the North Carolina Republican Party that sought to block University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC) students and staff from using digital IDs as a way to comply with the state's voter ID law.
The judge said North Carolina's voting law does not prohibit the use of digital IDs, as plaintiffs have argued in a lawsuit filed last week.
“Plaintiffs' assertion that state law prohibits the acceptance of digital or electronic photo identification such as the UNC Mobile One Card as a means of identification at the polls is false,” Gregory wrote in the order.
Republicans filed a lawsuit last week against the North Carolina State Board of Elections over its recent 3-2 decision to allow the use of digital IDs issued by the University of North Carolina to vote. The board argued that the decision violated the state's voter law, which requires voting ID to be in a “physical, tangible” form. They also argued that the board's decision allows people who are not eligible to vote to cast their ballots.
The judge disagreed, saying UNC Digital ID, available on Apple devices, helps registered voters cast their ballots at the ballot box.
“Plaintiffs have not shown any credible connection between the state board's approval of the Mobile One Card and an increased risk of ineligible voters casting illegal ballots,” Gregory said. “Uneligible voters cannot use the Mobile One Card to register to vote or to cast a ballot. The Mobile One Card merely serves as a means for already registered voters to prove their identity when voting.”
The Hill has reached out to the Republican Party's lawyers for comment.
The UNC One Card is the school's primary identification card, and staff and students can also obtain physical ID. The ruling comes as in-person voting is scheduled to begin in mid-October.
The Tar Heel State is likely to be a key battleground in the 2024 presidential election. Former President Trump won the state by about 1.3 percentage points in 2020, but Democrats have increasingly targeted the state.
