Supreme Court Lets New Hampshire Bar Student IDs for Voting in the Midterms

The Supreme Court on Thursday, Oct. 22, cleared the way for New Hampshire to bar voters from using student ID cards to prove their identity in the Nov. 3 midterm elections, pausing a federal judge's order that had let election officials consider the cards as backup evidence, according to SCOTUSblog, the Associated Press and Fox News.

In a brief, unsigned order, the justices stayed a ruling by U.S. District Judge Joseph Laplante while the state's appeal moves forward. The court cited the principle, often called the Purcell principle, that "lower federal courts should ordinarily not alter the election rules on the eve of an election," SCOTUSblog reported.

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson was the only justice to publicly dissent.

What the New Hampshire Law and Guidance Say

New Hampshire lawmakers passed the law, known as HB 323, in April, and it took effect in June, according to SCOTUSblog. It removed student ID cards from the forms of identification that are expressly valid to obtain a ballot.

Secretary of State David Scanlan then issued guidance in April telling election officials that student IDs could not be used to establish a voter's identity, even as supporting evidence under the state's alternative verification procedures, according to SCOTUSblog and Fox News.

The Coalition for Open Democracy, a nonprofit, sued, arguing that the law burdens the right to vote and was intended to discriminate against young voters, according to SCOTUSblog. In early October, Laplante left the law in place but blocked the secretary of state's guidance "to the extent it prohibits or discourages election officials from considering student IDs as evidence of voter identity" under a separate "safety-valve provision," according to the AP and SCOTUSblog.

After the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit declined to pause Laplante's ruling, Scanlan asked the Supreme Court to step in. In his filing, he said the order would require the state to undo steps it had taken since April to prepare for the election, including voting guides, polling-place posters, website updates and radio ads, according to SCOTUSblog. The Republican National Committee supported the state, the AP and Fox News reported.

What the Supreme Court Order Means for November

The one-paragraph order means New Hampshire election officials will not accept student IDs, including as backup proof, while the case continues. Voters who previously relied on a student ID will need another accepted form of identification, Fox News reported.

In her dissent, Jackson wrote that she "would not disturb a clearly justifiable federal-court order issued to ensure that the public receives accurate information about a State's electoral processes," according to Fox News. She argued that Laplante had "issued a targeted order" that was "reasonably designed to address alleged misinformation, not to change the law," SCOTUSblog reported.

State Rep. Donald McFarlane, who sponsored the bill, said colleges do not have the same controls as government agencies when issuing the cards, the AP reported. "Today's Supreme Court decision is a victory for common sense," McFarlane said in an email, according to the AP. "It allows HB 323 to work as intended: strengthening voter identity verification, applying a consistent standard, and maintaining public confidence in New Hampshire elections."

The ruling comes less than two weeks before New Hampshire voters weigh in on a closely contested U.S. Senate race, the AP reported.

Image: The New Hampshire State House in Concord (file photo), by Quintin Soloviev, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0.

Yossi Schmidt, Founder and Editor-in-Chief, The Digital Free Press

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Sources: SCOTUSblog, "Supreme Court allows New Hampshire to restrict use of student IDs in voting" (Oct. 22, 2026): https://www.scotusblog.com/2026/10/supreme-court-allows-new-hampshire-to-restrict-use-of-student-ids-in-voting/ ; Associated Press via PBS News, "Supreme Court allows New Hampshire to fully ban student IDs for voting in midterms" (Oct. 22, 2026): https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/supreme-court-allows-new-hampshire-to-fully-ban-student-ids-for-voting-in-midterms ; Fox News, "Ketanji Brown Jackson dissents in SCOTUS student ID voting ruling" (Oct. 23, 2026): https://www.foxnews.com/politics/jackson-publicly-breaks-supreme-court-justices-side-gop-last-minute-voter-id-fight