I can understand the need for drivers licenses to expire, because a person may break traffic laws and have their right to drive revoked. Making them get a new license every few years provides society the opportunity to make sure they are obeying the laws and can still see straight.

But a person's identity does not expire, even if their drivers license does.

The good news is that Russell was offered a provisional ballot. This doesn't always happen, even though it is supposed to.

After casting the provisional ballot, Russell had 10 days to go back to his county election official and prove that he was indeed Russell Baughman, by giving them a photo ID that was not out of date. His VA card wasn't good enough, because it had no expiration date at all.

Russell had tried three times before to get an official ID card, but was denied because he had no passport (hadn't needed one to go fight abroad with the military) and he'd lost his birth certificate.

Turns out, by going a fourth time, he found an employee at the Bureau of Moter Vehicles who was willing to give him a new ID based on his old drivers license and VA card.

Russell's state of Indiana is concerned that someone else might show up at Russell's polling place and pretend to be Russell, and then cast a vote instead of him. There is no indication that anyone has ever attempted to do this in Indiana.

However, there is good reason to believe that our election results will not truly reflect the people's will if we make it so hard for some people to vote. The results, if you may, will be more fraudulent and less true than if every eligible voter casts a ballot.

Nonetheless, it seems like there would be many other ways of asking Russell to prove he is Russell other than making him take 4 trips to the BMV. When Russell registered to vote, he signed his voter registration form. Why not just ask him to sign his provisional ballot, and compare that to his signature on file?