State Question 846 won’t create a voter identification requirement. Instead, it asks voters whether proof of identity to vote should be required by the Oklahoma Constitution, with lawmakers still deciding what counts as acceptable proof.
When Oklahoma voters head to the polls Aug. 25, they’ll decide more than primary runoff races.
They’ll also vote on State Question 846, a proposed constitutional amendment that would place a requirement for proof of identity to vote into the Oklahoma Constitution.
For many voters, the first question may be obvious: Doesn’t Oklahoma already require voter ID?
Yes.
Oklahoma has required voters to verify their identity before casting a ballot for more than a decade. Acceptable identification currently includes several forms of government-issued photo identification, as well as the voter identification card issued by county election boards, which does not include a photograph.
If approved, State Question 846 would not create a new voter identification requirement. Instead, it would make proof of identity a constitutional requirement while continuing to leave the details to the Legislature. The proposed amendment requires proof of identity to vote and directs lawmakers to define by law what constitutes acceptable proof of identity.
Why amend the Constitution?
That’s the central question before voters.
Ordinary laws can be amended or repealed by a future Legislature and governor.
Constitutional provisions cannot be changed through ordinary legislation.
Once approved by voters, a constitutional amendment generally can be changed only through another statewide vote.
Supporters say that’s exactly why State Question 846 is needed.
Legislative leaders who authored the measure argued that Oklahoma’s voter identification requirement should be protected from future Legislatures that might otherwise repeal it through ordinary legislation. By placing the requirement in the Constitution, any effort to eliminate it would generally require voter approval.
No significant legislative effort has emerged in recent years to repeal Oklahoma’s existing voter identification law, making the proposal a preventive measure rather than a response to an active repeal effort.
What would change?
For most Oklahoma voters, nothing would change.
The proposal would not change the forms of identification currently accepted under Oklahoma law.
It would not define what constitutes proof of identity.
Instead, those decisions would remain with the Legislature, just as they are today.
That means lawmakers could continue recognizing the current voter identification card issued by county election boards, adopt different forms of acceptable identification in the future or otherwise revise the details of the law, provided some form of proof of identity remains required.
A question beyond voter ID
The proposal also raises a broader civics question:
Which public policies belong in Oklahoma’s Constitution, and which should remain ordinary statutes that future Legislatures can amend?
Oklahoma’s Constitution establishes the framework of state government, but over the years voters have approved amendments addressing specific public policy issues, including tax limitations, term limits, the state lottery, victims’ rights, hunting and fishing rights, and Medicaid expansion.
Supporters say constitutional amendments protect important public policies from changing political majorities.
Critics contend constitutions should establish the structure of government and leave most public policy to lawmakers through the legislative process.
The takeaway
State Question 846 is not a vote on whether Oklahoma should require proof of identity to vote.
That decision was made years ago through state law.
Instead, voters are being asked whether the requirement itself should become part of the Oklahoma Constitution, making it more difficult for a future Legislature to eliminate without another vote of the people.
