Could new laws make voting harder for married women?
Post Reports
The Washington Post
4.4 • 5.1K Ratings
🗓️ 27 May 2025
⏱️ 22 minutes
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Summary
Arizona, New Hampshire, Louisiana and Wyoming have all passed laws requiring voters to prove they are citizens. Texas has been considering one. But critics are raising alarm bells that such laws could make it harder for eligible citizens to vote – in particular, women who have changed their names after marriage or divorce.
Today’s show was produced by Laura Benshoff. It was edited by Maggie Penman and mixed by Sam Bair.
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| 1:00.1 | the show. The House Committee on Elections will come to order. The clerk will call the roll. |
| 1:07.7 | Chair Shaheen. Here. Vice Chair Busey. Representative Isaac. That's a recent state |
| 1:14.0 | legislative committee hearing in Texas about a possible new voting law. Chair lays out, House |
| 1:19.2 | Bill 5337, and recognizes Representative Isaac to explain the bill. It would require anyone who wants |
| 1:26.3 | to vote in Texas to prove they are a U.S. citizen. |
| 1:30.0 | Here's bill sponsor, Republican State Representative Kerry Isaac. |
| 1:33.5 | We already require proof of citizenship when applying for a passport or a driver's license, |
| 1:39.3 | something far less sacred than voting in our elections. |
| 1:42.8 | It's not unreasonable to apply the same standards to the |
| 1:45.8 | foundation of our democracy. Supporters of the bill say having to prove who you are with a birth |
| 1:51.3 | certificate or other official document, that that's necessary to prevent voter fraud. But that kind of |
| 1:57.8 | fraud has never been proven to happen at any kind of meaningful scale. |
| 2:01.3 | And critics say those laws are just going to make it harder for everyone to register to vote. |
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