CONCORD, NH — With the midterm election just weeks away, a New Hampshire judge on Monday struck down a new law that some claim would have led to voter suppression. The law, Senate Bill 3, would require more paperwork from new residents to prove they live in New Hampshire. Governor Chris Sununu, a Republican, signed the bill into law in 2017. It would have applied to the November 6 midterm election but that’s no longer the case after Monday’s injunction, which is temporary and could be reversed after the election.
Hillsborough Superior Court Judge Kenneth Brown issued the injunction after the League of Women Voters of New Hampshire filed a legal challenge to the new law.
SB 3’s passage was a voter suppression tactic, according to New Hampshire Democratic Party Chair Ray Buckley.
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“Every qualified voter should be permitted to vote without unnecessary burdens imposed upon them,” Buckley said in a statement.
Sununu said SB 3 “does nothing more than ensure that all those who register to vote present valid identification.”
“As the first in the nation presidential primary state, we have an obligation to ensure the integrity of our elections,” Sununu said in a statement. “While this ruling is not unexpected, it is just one step in the process and I am confident that SB 3 will ultimately be upheld.”
The American Civil Liberties Union of New Hampshire opposes the law, saying it could lead to longer lines at the polls and disproportionately affect groups including the homeless.
“Today is a big victory for voters in New Hampshire,” ACLU-NH Attorney Henry Klementowicz said in a statement. “SB3 does nothing to make our elections more secure while at the same time throwing up difficult roadblocks to voting for some of the most disadvantaged populations.”
Earlier this year, a Hampton couple and University of New Hampshire student were accused of voter fraud after allegedly voting twice in the 2016 election.
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