A leader of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People says the implementation of Pennsylvania's new voter ID law has confused voters and slowed the organization's efforts to register voters.


John Jordan, whose group is a plaintiff in the lawsuit seeking to block the photo ID requirement from taking effect as scheduled on Election Day, testified at a Commonwealth Court hearing Tuesday.


Jordan says multiple revisions to the rules for obtaining valid IDs have left voters' heads spinning shortly before a presidential election. He says the NAACP's efforts to educate voters about the law have made it more difficult to focus on registering voters.

At issue is a requirement that all Pennsylvania voters show a valid photo ID before their votes will be counted. It takes effect on Election Day, Nov. 6.

Earlier Tuesday, the state's elections chief said identification cards issued by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation are the best choice for voters seeking to comply with the new voter ID law.

Testifying Tuesday in Commonwealth Court, Secretary of State Carol Aichele defended her department's efforts to make PennDOT driver's licenses and nondriver IDs the standard for complying with the photo ID requirement that takes effect in the Nov. 6 election.

But  Washington lawyer David Gersch, who is seeking to block the law, said that poses a problem for voters without a birth certificate or Social Security card. He said many voters can obtain absentee ballots or planned special State Department ID cards without such rigorous documentation.

Lawyers trying to block the law from taking effect say more than 1 million voters lack the photo IDs that the law requires. State officials say the number is smaller and that they'll make sure all voters get proper IDs.

Lawyers in the week-old case are scheduled to call their final witnesses Wednesday and to make closing arguments Thursday.

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