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Thursday, Jan 16, 2025

In Wisconsin, do you need more proof of ID to vote than to buy a gun?

Tom Kertscher / Wisconsin Watch, Wisconsin Watch
yes

Wisconsin requires proof of identification to vote. 

Republicans in the Legislature put a referendum on the April 1 ballot to add the requirement to the state constitution. State Sen. Kelda Roys, D-Madison, said the amendment makes it “harder to vote” than to buy a gun.

In Wisconsin, federally licensed gun dealers are required to do background checks on gun purchasers, but other sellers, such as individuals selling privately or at gun shows, are not.

According to a 2015 national survey of gun owners, 22% who made their most recent purchase within two years said they did so without a background check; the figure was 57% among gun owners in states such as Wisconsin that didn’t regulate private gun sales.

It’s the latest national survey, said Johns Hopkins University gun policy expert Daniel Webster.

On voter ID, a University of Wisconsin-Madison study estimated Wisconsin’s law prevented 4,000-11,000 Milwaukee and Dane county residents from voting in the 2016 presidential election.

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