Despite the left’s claims voter ID laws are racist, a solid majority of non-white voters (77%) back them.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — As partisan-fueled court battles over state voting laws are poised to shape the political landscape in 2016 and beyond, new Gallup research shows four in five Americans support both early voting and voter ID laws. A smaller majority of 63% support automatic voter registration.

hile providing early voting opportunities and requiring voters to show photo identification at polling stations are popular among a majority of Americans, both are contentiously debated by party leaders and are being contested in state courts. Most recently, a federal judge in Ohio ruled against limiting early voting, saying the move would discriminate against black voters. There are electorally strategic reasons as to why each major political party has a stake in the two contested policies.

Majorities of Democrats and Republicans support early voting, but the option finds more favor among Democrats (85%) than Republicans (74%). Early voting typically benefits Democratic candidates, who have performed well electorally among early voters in many states that allow the option. Blacks and lower-income Americans — key Democratic support blocs — disproportionately opt to vote early.

Studies have shown that voter ID laws reduce voting among blacks and young adults, who tend to vote Democratic. Many Republican leaders and Republican state legislatures have worked to put them into law. While majorities of Republicans and Democrats favor voter ID laws, Republicans (95%) overwhelmingly support them. Democratic support is more tepid, at 63%. GOP-led states have been the most active proponents of voter ID laws. Republicans who have championed these laws claim they prevent voter fraud, while opponents argue that there are too few cases to justify the legislation.