An estimated 1.3 million transgender U.S. citizens are eligible to vote in the November midterm elections. However, hundreds of thousands could face barriers at the polls because their identification does not reflect their correct name or gender, according to a new analysis from the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law.
The report found that approximately 323,700 transgender citizens living in states with voter ID laws may lack identification that accurately reflects their name and gender. About 113,700 of them live in states with the strictest voter ID requirements. In those states, voters generally must present a government-issued photo ID and have few or no alternatives.
The Williams Institute examined data from the 2022 U.S. Trans Survey (USTS), which included more than 92,000 transgender respondents.
Among transgender adult citizens who responded to the survey, 49 percent said they had no identification listing their correct name and 54 percent said they had no identification reflecting their correct gender. About 58 percent said they had no ID that correctly represented both.
Researchers found higher rates of inaccurate identification among transgender people who are Black, Indigenous or people of color, young adults, students, people with low incomes, people experiencing homelessness and people with disabilities.
Updating identification documents can also create challenges for transgender voters. Requirements vary by state and federal agency. Some states also prohibit changes to gender markers on certain documents.
The report found that eight states currently prohibit changes to gender markers on driver’s licenses. Ten prohibit changes to gender markers on original birth certificates. Seven states prohibit corrections on both documents. Five of those states — Indiana, Kansas, Tennessee, Florida, and Texas — also require voters to present photo identification.
Even where changes are permitted, obtaining updated documents can require court orders, physician letters and fees for new identification cards.
“Voter ID laws create a unique and, in some cases, insurmountable barrier to voting for a substantial number of transgender people,” said Will Tentindo, a staff attorney at the Williams Institute and lead author of the report, in a press release accompanying the analysis.
The report comes as voting laws continue to change across the country. Between Jan. 2025 and May 2026, at least 19 states passed 44 laws restricting voting procedures, according to the Williams Institute.
Researchers also pointed to proposed federal changes to voting requirements. The SAVE America Act, which is under consideration in Congress, would require voters to present photo identification and narrow the types of identification they could use.
“Voter ID laws can potentially disenfranchise a substantial number of transgender people and can be particularly impactful in elections decided by a small number of votes,” said Jody L. Herman, senior scholar of public policy at the Williams Institute and co-author of the report.
