Mississippi will begin issuing free voter identification cards to state residents without another form of photo identification beginning in early 2014, Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann told the Associated Press in an interview published Monday.

Mississippi began implementing its voter identification law in June along with a few other states after the Supreme Court struck down section four of the Voting Rights Act, which forced Southern states to seek federal approval for any changes to their voting laws.

The Mississippi law requires all voters to have photo ID at the polls, a controversial rule that some argue is meant to suppress minority votes.

Voters in Mississippi will need to show identification at the polls starting in June for the 2014 primary elections.