HARRISBURG - Hundreds of thousands of voters are receiving personalized letters from Pennsylvania's top elections official advising them of the need to have legally acceptable photo ID when they vote.
The letters from Secretary of the Commonwealth Carole Aichele are being mailed to an estimated 750,000 registered voters whose names don't match up on official records as having a driver's license from the state Department of Transportation.
A driver's license is the most common form of photo ID needed to comply with Pennsylvania's controversial voter photo ID law. The letter advises that six other forms of ID are acceptable at the polls, including ID issued by the federal or state government, valid U.S. passport, U.S. military ID for active duty or retired military, an employee ID issued by local, state or federal government, ID issued by a Pennsylvania public or private college or university and by a Pennsylvania care facility.
The notices arrive in official state envelopes marked "time sensitive," a reference to the approaching Nov. 6 General Election.
An ongoing hearing in Commonwealth Court on an injunction seeking to block implementation of the law has heard testimony giving conflicting estimates of how many of the state's 8.3 million registered voters lack PennDOT-issued IDs.
The mailing reflects an effort to reach voters whose names didn't appear on both state databases, Department of State spokesman Ron Ruman said Tuesday.
Individuals who have different forms of their name on a voter registration card and driver's license may have received letters because a match wasn't made in the database comparison, Ruman said.
In some cases, individuals have their full middle name on their driver's license and a middle initial on their voter registration card.
Another example of non-database matches occurring is with individuals who have last names starting with an 'O' such as O'Donnell, Ruman said. PennDOT databases based don't reflect the apostrophe while the Department of State does, he said.
The law allows voters to present any of the specified photo IDs with a name that "substantially conforms" to the name appearing on a voter register, Ruman said.
During House floor debate last March, bill sponsor Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-12, Cranberry Township, said the phrase "substantially conforms" would cover typographical errors and names that are similar but not exact.
"You have already taken an important step by registering to vote," Aichele wrote in the letter. "Please make sure you have a valid photo ID so that your vote counts."