In a shocking upset, the voter ID amendment has failed, and by a sizable margin. With 98 percent of precincts reporting, the "no" votes led by nearly 8 percentage points, MPR says. The measure would have amended the state constitution to require voters to bring photo IDs to the polls.

Mayors R.T. Rybak of Minneapolis and Chirs Coleman of St. Paul say a requirement that Minnesotans show a photo ID to vote would drive up the costs of holding an election. They call the change an unfunded mandate and say it could force local governments to raise property taxes. The Minnesota Supreme Court is expected to rule soon on a lawsuit challenging the question slated to appear on the November ballot.

If the Republican Senate also passes it, voters in the general election this November will decide whether to amend the state's constitution to require that voters present a valid photo ID before they can cast a ballot.

The Senate Local Government and Elections Committee passed the voter ID bill on a party-line vote, with DFLers opposing it. The measure has several more stops before it would appear on the November ballot as a proposed Constitutional amendment.

The measure advanced through a House committee on a party-line vote Monday. If the House and Senate pass the proposal, then voters in the November election will decide whether to amend the state constitution to require that all would-be voters present a photo ID before they cast a ballot.

The Minnesota Supreme Court heard arguments Tuesday afternoon in a lawsuit aimed at keeping the voter ID constitutional amendment off of the statewide ballot. The American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota, League of Women Voters Minnesota and other anti-amendment groups are asking the court to strike down the ballot question. They claim its wording is too vague and misleading.

Groups that are challenging the proposed Constitutional amendment that would require an ID to vote filed paperwork with the Minnesota Supreme Court in advance of the hearing later this month. They say if the court approves the ballot question as is, it will send the message that the Legislature is free to mislead or deceive voters.

Estimates of how much it will cost to implement a voter ID requirement at Minnesota polling places range from a few million dollars to $100 million. The cost is among many details that state lawmakers will need to fill in if residents approve a Constitutional amendment requiring a government-issued ID to vote.