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In December 2024, CA State Rep. Carl DeMaio – who also serves as chairman of Reform California – introduced the CA Voter ID Initiative to not only require citizenship verification for voter registration but photo ID for casting a ballot. In introducing the measure, DeMaio said “too many Californians have lost trust and confidence in our elections – and we need to fix that immediately if we are to have a healthy democracy going forward.”
In January, President Trump endorsed CA Voter ID as a “condition” for continued federal funding to the state.
Both DeMaio and the measure’s co-sponsor State Rep. Bill Essayli have worked to convince Sacramento politicians to do the right thing and put the measure on the 2026 ballot – but the legislature has stubbornly refused to act.
Today DeMaio announced that a number of elected officials from across California and campaign committees are coming together as a formal coalition to support the qualification of and passage of a Voter ID Initiative in California in the 2026 election.
Several members of the coalition also released polling showing overwhelming bipartisan support for a Voter ID Initiative in California – with a super-majority of Republicans and Independents and a majority of even Democratic voters supporting the initiative.
Specifically, 68% of Californians support requiring an ID when casting a ballot to verify an individual’s identity. A whopping 72% support verifying citizenship for anyone wishing to register to vote.
“Politicians and the media will keep denying the fact that California has real problems with election integrity, but the message from the public is loud and clear in support of requiring Voter ID as the best way to restore public trust and confidence in our elections,” says Carl DeMaio, State Assemblymember (District 75) and Chairman of Reform California.
"Thirty-six states in the U.S. have implemented some form of voter identification requirement. Similarly, every country in Europe mandates that in-person voters present photo ID to cast their ballots. This practice is also standard in Canada, Japan, South Korea, India, Mexico, Brazil, South Africa, and many other nations worldwide, spanning both developed and developing democracies," said Julie Luckey, Director of Californians for Voter ID. "Support for voter ID laws transcends party lines—it’s not a Republican or Democratic issue. Polls consistently show that majorities of Republicans, Democrats, and independents favor these measures. Nor is this unique to the United States; it’s a global norm. Voter ID is simply a common-sense policy. California needs to modernize its elections to align with the vast majority of the world’s democracies. While our state leads in so many areas, it lags behind on this issue. It’s time for California to catch up and enact voter ID laws."
“There is a cancer growing in our democracy where too many people have lost confidence in our elections – and enacting a Voter ID law should be seen as the best bipartisan solution to this problem,” says Bill Essayli, State Assemblymember (District 63) and Chairman of Common-Sense California.
“Voter ID is a common sense step that improves election security, which is why it receives broad support among Democrats, Republicans and independents throughout California. By passing a Voter ID initiative in California we can give voters increased confidence in our elections without unnecessarily restricting access to voting,” says Ken Calvert, US Representative (District 41).
“There is wide-spread support among the donor community for enacting common-sense election integrity reforms through the Voter ID Initiative and we look forward to helping get this important reform qualified and passed in 2026,” says Teresa Hernandez, Chair, Orange County Lincoln Club
Reform California has already begun recruitment of volunteers to collect signatures to qualify the initiative. To volunteer, sign up at www.VoterIDVolunteer.org
To commit to sign the petition when it is ready for circulation, visit: www.VoterIDPetition.org
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