Watch John Oliver slam voter ID laws

Every American deserves an equal vote, John Oliver said on Sunday's Last Week Tonight — "even idiots" — but new laws in several states are making it harder for hundreds of thousands of people to cast their ballots.

In the states where voters have to show photo ID to prove who they are, people who don't have a driver's license — from grandmothers who no longer drive to "the reclusive uncle who rollerblades everywhere" — have to go and apply for a photo ID in order to vote. The laws affect a lot of people, Oliver said: In Texas, 500,000 registered voters do not have the necessary ID to vote.

The major problem, he continued, is that it can be incredibly difficult to get the ID. Oliver shared the story of 68-year-old Doris Clark in Pennsylvania, who was turned away three times for a voter ID card — she was told the clerks needed to see her original birth certificate, then original Social Security card, then her husband's death certificate for proof of her married name. In some areas, the offices are barely open — in one part of Wisconsin, the ID-issuing office was open the fifth Wednesday of the month for just a few hours. "Voting is a right," Oliver said. "If you take it away, you ruin democracy."

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Studies show that these restrictions tend to disproportionately impact African American and Latino voters, Oliver said, and they also don't do anything to stop fraudulent activity like vote buying, vote tampering, and ballot box stuffing. The only thing the laws target is voter impersonation, which is incredibly rare and "a stupid crime," Oliver said. "Stand in line at a polling place and risk five years in prison and a $10,000 fine, all to cast one, probably not consequential extra vote. In terms of pointless crimes, it's right up there with forging a Bed, Bath & Beyond coupon. It's a lot of trouble with low reward." Watch the video below, and get ready for the hypocrisy at the end when Oliver enlightens the audience on "ghost voting." Catherine Garcia