The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Friday to overturn a temporary suspension of an Arizona law that requires proof of citizenship to vote, and students may have difficulties voting if they don’t understand the law’s rules, said Associated Students of the University of Arizona President Erin Hertzog.

The temporary enjoinment by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals briefly allowed voter registration without identification and came as a result of voiced frustration by citizens who couldn’t provide proof of citizenship, said Serena Unrein, associate executive director of the Arizona Students Association. The law particularly affected out-of-state students who had their Social Security cards or birth certificates in their home state, she said.

Now voters will need to present valid ID at the polls or request a mail-in ballot, Unrein said. Voters who do not bring the proper identification to the polls can also vote with provisional ballot that must be brought to a polling station along with proper identification within five days after the election to be counted, said Matthew Boepple, ASA director.

Although the ASUA voting stations will have provisional ballots, the Supreme Court ruling will make the voting process more difficult for students, Hertzog said.

“”This is a new proposition and is not something that voters are used to,”” Hertzog said. “”Now there is a big push on our part to educate voters of the new requirements.””

ASUA and ASA will be talking to students about voting requirements through e-mails, telephone calls and tabling on the UA Mall throughout next week, Hertzog said.

Elizabeth Breininger, a special education and rehabilitation junior, said she feels the voter identification law has some positive aspects to it.

Voters must present either:

• One form of identification that bears the name, address and photograph of the voter, such as an Arizona driver’s license or federal, state or local government-issued identification, or

If a voter doesn’t have the required forms of ID or if a voter’s address has changed, they will receive a
provisional ballot.

Source: The Arizona Secretary of State voter information Web page.

“”If you let noncitizens vote, it could throw the election,”” Breininger said. “”Letting only citizens vote gives the candidates more of an even chance.””

However, other students feel that the proposition extends beyond the issues of immigration and voting and infringes on their ability to vote.

“”Anything that makes voting more difficult for the average citizen, like having to ask your parents for a copy of your birth certificate, is bureaucracy, not conducive to real democracy,”” said Allison Dumka, a political science senior.

Dumka, who had to get a new driver’s license to show her current address to vote, said she has very strong feelings regarding Proposition 200. Dumka said the law will have many negative consequences, especially for out-of-state students.

Students who live in dorms will also have difficulty voting in Arizona because they don’t have a water or electric bill to prove they are residing in Pima County, Dumka said.

Hertzog said ASUA will also be telling students where they are supposed to vote. Students who live on campus can vote at ASUA’s voting booth, and a shuttle bus will be available to take students from other districts to their specific voting locations.

“”Even if a student doesn’t know which district they should vote in, they can arrive at the shuttle stop and someone will let them know based on their address,”” Hertzog said.

The free shuttle will be running Nov. 7 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Hertzog said.