The 2016 presidential election was the first since the passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act in which full voting protections were not in place for historically marginalized voters. This shift was largely due to a 5-4 decision in "Shelby v. Holder" (2013) in which the Supreme Court ruled that states with a history of voter discrimination no longer needed federal approval to change voting laws. One of the most consequential results of that ruling has been the passage by state legislatures of voter identification (i.e., voter ID) laws that require citizens to present specific types of identification to cast a ballot on Election Day. Since 2011, Republican politicians and political groups in 16 states have successfully led the push to either adopt new voter ID laws or make existing laws stricter. Many Republicans argue that these laws will safeguard democracy by preventing voter fraud; however, many Democrats and other political groups say that the underlying purpose of these laws is to suppress the vote of historically marginalized groups. These debates around voter ID laws can be used to inspire student citizens to investigate and deliberate the compelling question, "Are voter ID laws democratic?"