Crist to testify against voter ID laws

Former Florida Gov. Charlie Crist will testify at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing this week about voting rights, Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) announced Monday.

Florida was one of a handful of battleground states at the center of controversy over voter ID laws, most of which were put on hold by courts that deemed them too restrictive. The laws were enacted in Florida after Crist — who was a Republican in office, ran for Senate in 2010 as an independent and recently became a Democrat — left office.

Crist and other Democrats criticize the laws as an attempt to disenfranchise poor and minority voters. Supporters argue the laws help prevent voter fraud and that the identification requirements aren't overly burdensome.

Current Florida Gov. Rick Scott, a Republican, also came under fire when he tried to purge ineligible voters from the rolls who were later deemed eligible to vote.

Testifying with Crist will be Nina Perales of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund as well as Gilda Cobb Hunter, a Democratic member of the South Carolina legislature who has opposed voter ID laws.

The hearing is at 10 a.m. Wednesday in Dirksen 226.