California Republicans have launched a ballot initiative to require voter ID, aiming to gather 875,000 signatures by the 2026 deadline. Over 300,000 signatures have been collected so far, with Assemblymember Carl DeMaio leading the effort through his organization Reform California. The initiative seeks to restore public trust in elections by implementing internal controls and preventing voter fraud, which proponents argue is currently difficult to detect.
DeMaio emphasized that the initiative is about restoring internal controls to improve the election process and rebuilding public confidence in democracy. He highlighted the concerns of citizens about how elections are conducted. The campaign faces the challenge of collecting the remaining 575,000 signatures within 129 days. In the U.S., 36 states already have laws requiring some form of voter identification. Of these, 24 require photo IDs.
President Donald Trump’s executive order on election integrity, which included voter ID requirements, was struck down by a federal court. This legal challenge underscores the ongoing debate over election regulations and the balance of power between the executive and legislative branches. A poll from Gallup taken just before the 2024 elections found that 84% of U.S. adults were in favor of requiring voters to show identification and 83% supported requiring proof of citizenship when registering for the first time.