US midterms 2026: US Supreme Court allows New Hampshire to restrict student IDs for voting

The US Supreme Court on Thursday allowed New Hampshire officials to restrict the circumstances in which voters can use student identification cards to obtain a ballot, ruling that a lower court decision blocking enforcement of the policy came too close to Election Day. The unsigned order marked a victory for New Hampshire Secretary of State David Scanlan, a Republican, and the Republican National Committee (RNC), which had backed him in the legal dispute.

The court did not disclose how the justices voted but provided a brief explanation citing the ‘Purcell principle’, which warns courts against making last-minute changes to election rules. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, one of the court’s liberal justices, issued a brief dissent questioning the application of the Purcell doctrine. New Hampshire voters are scheduled to elect a senator in November to fill the seat being vacated by retiring Democratic Senator Jeanne Shaheen.

A recent CNN poll found that Democrats held a 31 percentage point advantage over Republicans among younger adults. Lower federal courts had permitted the state to enforce the central provision of a law passed by the state legislature this spring. Under the legislation, student IDs can no longer be used on their own to verify a voter’s identity. However, state law also contains a ‘safety valve’ that allows voters to establish their identity through alternative means.

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The dispute before the Supreme Court centred on whether student IDs could be considered alongside other evidence when election officials assessed the identity of someone requesting a ballot. After New Hampshire officials interpreted the new law as prohibiting the use of student IDs even under these circumstances, the voting rights group Coalition for Open Democracy filed a lawsuit.

On October 2, a federal district court blocked enforcement of the state’s interpretation. New Hampshire subsequently filed an emergency appeal with the Supreme Court, arguing that the Purcell opinion required the justices to rule in its favour. The RNC had also warned that the lower court’s decision threatens to disrupt identity verification in New Hampshire’s looming elections.

The Supreme Court has faced several high-profile election disputes ahead of next month’s midterm elections. Among the most prominent was a decision in mid-September rejecting President Donald Trump’s proposal to change how mail ballots are sent to voters nationwide.