College students shed light on Georgia voting law

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - In this extremely close runoff, every vote counts. A Georgia voting law is causing confusion among college students about casting their ballots.

When you get to your polling location, a poll worker will ask you for your ID. If you’re a student at a public university or college in Georgia, a student ID meets the requirements for you to vote. Students at private universities and colleges, like Spelman College, don’t have that same opportunity.

Despite her work registering students to vote, Spelman College senior Lauren Nicks had to register to vote in her home state of new york.

“Having your vote counted is basically having your voice heard. I’ve been a student here for pretty much four years now. And you know, with abortion on the ballot, police brutality, there’s a lot that I’d like to see change,” said Nicks.

Nicks said she experienced confusion over a 16-year-old Georgia voter law, which allows for out-of-state students at public universities or colleges to use their student IDs at the polls, but it does not include private schools.

The law doesn’t keep her from voting in Georgia. She could have used her New York driver’s license or a passport. It was unclear to her, so she wants to make it clear to others.

“My advice would be, to familiarize yourself with election laws. I believe that we should be able to vote with our student IDs, like students at Georgia State.”

Danielle Lang with the Campaign Legal Center says Georgia’s voting requirements are some of the strictest in the country. Lang argues that this law makes it harder for the roughly 10,000 students like Nicks who attend one of the 10 private schools across the state. seven out of the 10 private schools are historically black colleges.

“Georgia has a long history of racial discrimination. How this is playing out with students in HBCUs is something that should be a concern for the legislature. This is somewhere we could have thoughtful changes in the future,” said Lang

To find out what type of ID to bring to the polls, click here.

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