Judge denies Republican request to prevent UNC mobile One Card as voter ID

On Thursday, a North Carolina judge denied the N.C. Republican Party and Republican National Committee’s joint request to prevent the UNC mobile One Card as a valid form of voter ID.

The complaint, which was filed on Sept. 12 against the North Carolina State Board of Elections, stated that North Carolina law prohibits using a photo ID on mobile devices when voting and the One Card is not a valid form of voter ID, since it is not a physical “card.”

It further alleged that allowing voters to use an electronically stored ID would make it easier for a user to commit fraud and potentially allow ineligible voters to vote.

The One Card has been an acceptable form of Voter ID since 2020, but until the decision on Aug. 20, only physical One Cards were accepted at polling places. 

The Democratic National Committee and UNC’s Affirmative Action Coalition both also filed motions to intervene Monday. 

“The State Board’s decision to allow UNC students to use our official university-issued digital IDs for voting simply recognizes the reality of how students live and operate today,” Alexander Denza, Affirmative Action Coalition and TransparUNCy executive member, said in a text statement. “This lawsuit by the Republican National Committee and North Carolina Republican Party is a thinly veiled attempt to make it harder for students to vote by eliminating a form of official ID that is ubiquitous on our campus.”

Martha Plaehn, a UNC junior and the co-campus coordinator for the North Carolina Public Interest Research Group New Voters Project, said having accessible identification options like the digital One Card makes it easier for students to vote.

Plaehn said as physical One Cards become antiquated, it is important for students and employees to have the option to use their mobile One Card, especially for people who do not have other forms of ID, like a driver’s license or a passport. 

The One Card Office went through a long process to make the digital One Card a verifiable ID, meaning it would not lead to voter fraud any more than a physical One Card would, Plaehn added.

The RNC and NCGOP have filed seven lawsuits against the NCSBE in the past 50 days questioning how different election procedures are implemented, Policy and Programs Manager at Democracy N.C. Carol Moreno said. 

“A​​cross the nation, the more that different entities are able to question the power of local election officials or state election officials, the more they're able to get people to distrust the elections process,” she said. 

On Sept. 20, the Republican plaintiffs appealed the case to the N.C. Court of Appeals. 

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