I saw posts online saying voter ID requirements (demonstrating citizenship) in the US would disenfranchise college students and people who have changed their name, such as women or men who got married and changed their surname.

Those assertions, however, are not true.

• 89% of those age 18 and up have proof of citizenship documents.
• 9% have them but they are not readily available, such as college students who left them at their parent’s home.
• Just 2% lack any documentation.
• Of those who lack documentation, they are primarily age 18-24 – mostly in rural areas – and the very elderly.
• Data comes from surveys done by YouGov, Pew Research, Brennan Center for Justice, Cato Institute, a Reuters news article and the Good American Citizen Project

Second, moving to college does not invalidate your identification. In fact, passports, Social Security cards and birth certificates do not have an address on them!

Third, changing your name does not invalidate past documents. All past ID documents remain valid. You might be required to provide a “linking document” that links your past name to your current name – this can be a marriage certificate or Court order regarding a name change. Here is an official US government statement on this: US Citizens/Lawful Permanent Residents name does not match documents Note – we do not know how the SAVE Act might implement this – would they adopt the CBP approach or require something different?

The social media argument around name changes problems is based on the “false premise’ form of argument or “false assertion” by asserting that college students and those who change their name would not be able to vote. This is false.

Should the U.S. have voter ID requirements?

I have no idea. The purpose of this post is to highlight that some of the arguments around voter ID in the US are nonsensical.

Half of US states have a photo ID requirement already, one quarter have an alternative ID requirement, and one quarter have no ID requirement.

Changing your name or going to college has little or no bearing on your ID documents, as claimed on social media.

Only 2% of Americans are estimated to have no citizenship documents – the most common form of documentation is the birth certificate. Birth certificates can be obtained from one’s county or state and in the US, vary in cost from $10 to $31 (depending on your location).

Birth certificate registration is handled automatically by hospitals at birth; less than 1% of births are outside hospitals and nearly 100% are attended by a certified midwife or other health care practitioner and they are required to register the birth. At time of registration, the family can (essentially automatically) request a certified birth certificate. A birth certificate is generally requiried for enrolling students in school, and to obtain health and auto insurance that names the child

In looking up information on voter ID, I learned that most countries in the world have voter identification requirements.

Nearly All Countries and Half of US States Have Voter ID Requirements

Globally, nearly all countries require some form of voter ID, most requiring either government issued photo ID or a voter ID card (which typically includes a photo).

46 of 47 countries in the European region have photo ID requirements in order to vote. The UK is the exception but is in process of mandatory ID being required. Sweden permits alternative IDs if a photo ID is unavailable. India and Mexico require identification.

Canada uses “voter information cards” and allows some “alternative” proof of identity documents; photo ID is not mandated.

36 US states require some form of voter ID – depending on state this can be either photo ID or non-photo ID. Some states provide a voter photo ID card at no charge.

States Not Requiring Photo ID but accepting alternate ID may accept the following:

• Utility bill
• Bank statement
• Government document with name/address
• Voter registration card
• Social Security card
• Birth certificate

And finally, 13 states have no ID requirements.

Global List of Countries by Voter ID Requirement

The lists of countries was created with the assistance of AI search.

“Requires voter ID” means the country requires any form of identification (photo or non‑photo) at the polling place.

1. “Does not require voter ID” means the country allows voting without presenting ID, relying instead on signature matching, voter cards, attestations, or other verification.
2. Some countries have mixed systems (e.g., ID required only in certain elections or regions).
3. Europe is the clearest region: 46 of 47 European countries require photo ID.

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Countries That Require Voter Identification

Africa (All countries require voter ID unless noted otherwise)

Algeria
Angola
Benin
Botswana
Burkina Faso
Burundi
Cabo Verde
Cameroon
Central African Republic
Chad
Comoros
Congo (Republic of)
Congo (Democratic Republic of)
Côte d’Ivoire
Djibouti
Egypt
Equatorial Guinea
Eritrea
Eswatini
Ethiopia
Gabon
Gambia
Ghana
Guinea
Guinea‑Bissau
Kenya
Lesotho
Liberia
Libya
Madagascar
Malawi
Mali
Mauritania
Mauritius
Morocco
Mozambique
Namibia
Niger
Nigeria
Rwanda
São Tomé and Príncipe
Senegal
Seychelles
Sierra Leone
Somalia
South Africa
South Sudan
Sudan
Tanzania
Togo
Tunisia
Uganda
Zambia
Zimbabwe

(Africa overwhelmingly requires voter ID; no credible sources identify any African country without ID requirements.)

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Europe (46 of 47 require photo ID)

Require voter ID:
Albania
Andorra
Armenia
Austria
Azerbaijan
Belarus
Belgium
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bulgaria
Croatia
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Denmark (ID required on request)
Estonia
Finland
France
Georgia
Germany
Greece
Hungary
Iceland
Ireland
Italy
Kazakhstan
Kosovo
Latvia
Liechtenstein
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Malta
Moldova
Monaco
Montenegro
Netherlands
North Macedonia
Norway
Poland
Portugal
Romania
Russia
San Marino
Serbia
Slovakia
Slovenia
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
Turkey
Ukraine

Historically did NOT require ID:

• United Kingdom (is now transitioning to mandatory ID)

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North America

Require voter ID:

Barbados
Belize
Costa Rica
Cuba
Dominican Republic
El Salvador
Guatemala
Haiti
Honduras
Jamaica
Mexico (strict national voter ID card)
Nicaragua
Panama
Trinidad and Tobago
United States (varies by state with half requiring photo ID, one quarter permitting a non-photo ID, and about one quarter having no ID requirements)

Do NOT require voter ID:

• Canada (allows multiple non‑ID alternatives such as attestation)

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South America

Require voter ID:

Argentina (compulsory voting; national ID required)
Bolivia
Brazil
Chile
Colombia
Ecuador
Guyana
Paraguay
Peru
Suriname
Uruguay
Venezuela

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Asia

Require voter ID:

Afghanistan
Armenia
Azerbaijan
Bahrain
Bangladesh
Bhutan
Brunei
Cambodia
China
Georgia
India (EPIC voter ID system)
Indonesia
Iran
Iraq
Israel
Japan
Jordan
Kazakhstan
Kuwait
Kyrgyzstan
Laos
Lebanon
Malaysia
Maldives
Mongolia
Myanmar
Nepal
North Korea
Oman
Pakistan
Philippines
Qatar
Saudi Arabia
Singapore
South Korea
Sri Lanka
Syria
Taiwan
Tajikistan
Thailand
Timor‑Leste
Turkey
Turkmenistan
United Arab Emirates
Uzbekistan
Vietnam

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Oceania

Require voter ID:

Fiji
Papua New Guinea
Samoa
Solomon Islands
Tonga
Vanuatu

Do NOT require voter ID:

• Australia (signature check; ID not required in federal elections)
• New Zealand (no ID required; relies on voter roll + mailed card)

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🧭 Summary Table

Region	Countries Requiring Voter ID	Countries Not Requiring Voter ID
Africa	All	None
Europe	46 of 47	Historically UK only (now requiring)
North America	Most	Canada
South America	All	None
Asia	Nearly all	None identified
Oceania	Most	Australia, New Zealand

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The global norm is voter ID.

• Europe is nearly universal in requiring photo ID.
• Canada, Australia, New Zealand are the most notable democracies without mandatory voter ID.
• The U.S. is mixed, with many states requiring ID and others not.
• ID requirements dominate worldwide.