The government is implementing REAL ID for domestic air travel in the U.S., allegedly to beef up security. But the requirements for ID to vote have not changed.

Is this a step toward changing how people vote, or just a distraction from long-overdue electoral reform?

What Is the REAL ID — and Why Is It Rolling Out Now?

Starting May 7, 2025, Americans will need to present a REAL ID-compliant identification to board flights within the US. It’s not exactly a new thing. After the September 11 terrorist attacks, President George W. Bush signed the REAL ID Act into law in 2005. It was part of a broader plan to enhance homeland security.

Over the last two decades, there have been multiple extensions and delays. But the Department of Homeland Security is tired of waiting. So, ready or not, unless you have a compliant ID or an acceptable alternative like a passport, you’ll be left on the tarmac while your plane flies off without you.

The premise for REAL ID is simple. TSA official Adam Stahl says that REAL ID “bolsters safety by making fraudulent IDs harder to forge, thwarting criminals and terrorists”. This will make certain that people boarding planes are who they say they are. Homeland Security insists that this move is vital for national safety. But if verifying identity is crucial at airports, why isn’t it equally important at the ballot box, where the very foundation of our constitutional republic is at stake?

Selective Security: A Political Double Standard?

Leftists have long resisted voter ID laws, claiming they are “discriminatory”. They argue that requiring voter ID will make it harder for Black, Native American, elderly, and student voters to cast ballots. This unsubstantiated claim redirects attention from how power-hungry leftists are—and how allowing non-U.S. citizens to vote is just one of many tricks up their sleeve.

Meanwhile, most nations from Chile to Japan require voter identification—and benefit from widespread support for the policy. In America, however, common-sense election safeguards continue to fall on deaf ears. 

Conservatives like DOGE director Elon Musk have pointed out the hypocrisy. Democrats and other activists have been blocking Republicans' attempts to rectify things forever. Conservatives agree that a dirty game like this one cannot continue if democracy is to mean something to Americans. On April 1, 2025, voters in Wisconsin approved an amendment that requires voters to use photo identification in their state. Trump jubilantly expressed how important this step is:

Democrats fought hard against this, presumably so they can CHEAT. This is a BIG WIN FOR REPUBLICANS, MAYBE THE BIGGEST WIN OF THE NIGHT

Musk added, “Whichever party controls the House, you know, to a significant degree, controls the country, which then steers the course of Western civilization.”

Is the REAL ID rollout a step toward tighter controls that will extend to voting, or a shiny distraction to appease security-conscious voters while leaving elections exposed? Needless to say, if ID is critical for flying, then voter ID deserves its own set of wings!