(Edited for clarification Nov. 5) Election day registration, or same day registration, means that anyone can register on election day and cast their ballot that same day. This lawful tradition supports the New Hampshire way, as expressed by so many of our good and honest public servants, such as Assistant Attorney General Jim Kennedy, who stated to me, "In New Hampshire, we always err on the side of allowing people to vote."

Recently passed legislation puts a new twist on our cherished NH election day registration. The law, embedded in RSA 654:12, III Determining Qualifications of Applicant; Identity; Verification, states that when someone registers in New Hampshire for the first time on election day, they must show an approved photo identification, along with some document that verifies their domicile. This could be an electric bill or another form of mail that has been sent to their address of domicile.

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If new election day registrants do not have an approved form of photo ID, they will still be able to vote, but their registration affidavit will be marked, and within 90 days of the election they will receive a letter of welcome from the Secretary of State. If the Secretary of State's letter is returned as undeliverable, the Attorney General's office will investigate to learn why. The purpose of this is to verify that new registrants are who they say they are, and that they are legally domiciled as they indicate on their registration affidavit.

An "approved" form of photo ID is defined in RSA654:12 as follows:

(a) Any one of the following documents is presumptive evidence that the individual seeking to vote meets the domicile requirement, provided the document is currently valid, was issued to or in the name of the applicant, and shows the address the applicant claims as a domicile:

New Hampshire driver’s license.

Armed services identification, or other photo identification issued by the United States government.

(b) Any one of the following is presumptive evidence of the identity of an applicant sufficient to satisfy the identity requirement for an official authorized by RSA 659:30 to take the oath of an applicant swearing to a citizenship, domicile, or election day affidavit:

(1) Photo driver’s license issued by any state or the federal government.

(2) United States passport, armed services identification, or other photo identification issued by the United States government.

3) Photo identification issued by local or state government.

I spoke to Assistant Attorney General Jim Kennedy, who represents the Secretary of State's office on election affairs, to get clarification about the new photo ID requirements. Assistant AG Kennedy clarified that the law supports local election officials, specifically the Supervisors of the Checklist, in determining what is considered an acceptable and legitimate photo ID, if it differs from those listed above. The Supervisors of the Checklist must make this determination and uniformly apply the standard.

However, if you present a photo ID that is different from the "approved" list, your affidavit will still be marked for a follow up letter from the Secretary of State's office.

In addition to your photo ID, be sure to also bring a piece of mail that shows that you live where you say you live.

Assistant AG Kennedy cited our New Hampshire Constitution, Part One, Article 11 as the guiding rule for his office in taking a pro-voter stance:

Art. 11. [Elections and Elective Franchises.] All elections are to be free, and every inhabitant of the state of 18 years of age and upwards shall have an equal right to vote in any election. Every person shall be considered an inhabitant for the purposes of voting in the town, ward, or unincorporated place where he has his domicile. No person shall have the right to vote under the constitution of this state who has been convicted of treason, bribery or any willful violation of the election laws of this state or of the United States; but the supreme court may, on notice to the attorney general, restore the privilege to vote to any person who may have forfeited it by conviction of such offenses. The general court shall provide by law for voting by qualified voters who at the time of the biennial or state elections, or of the primary elections therefor, or of city elections, or of town elections by official ballot, are absent from the city or town of which they are inhabitants, or who by reason of physical disability are unable to vote in person, in the choice of any officer or officers to be elected or upon any question submitted at such election. Voting registration and polling places shall be easily accessible to all persons including disabled and elderly persons who are otherwise qualified to vote in the choice of any officer or officers to be elected or upon any question submitted at such election. The right to vote shall not be denied to any person because of the non-payment of any tax. Every inhabitant of the state, having the proper qualifications, has equal right to be elected into office.

A note on domicile
In New Hampshire, voters are eligible to vote based on their domicile, which is differentiated from residence. Domicile for the purposes of voting, is defined as follows:

An inhabitant's domicile for voting purposes is that one place where a person, more than any other place, has established a physical presence and manifests an intent to maintain a single continuous presence for domestic, social, and civil purposes relevant to participating in democratic self-government. A person has the right to change domicile at any time, however a mere intention to change domicile in the future does not, of itself, terminate an established domicile before the person actually moves.