You should need an ID to vote in an election. You need an ID to order a drink, to buy cigarettes, to open a bank account, to apply for food stamps, apply for welfare, apply for social security, apply for unemployment, apply for a job, rent or buy a house, apply for a mortgage, drive/buy/rent a car, get on an airplane, get married, rent a hotel room, visit a casino, to buy certain flu medicine at the pharmacy, but you don't need one to vote? It makes no sense.
You can go to CVS and buy Nyquil and get carded. On the way home, you stop to vote for the future of your country and aren't asked for any identification. Weird right.
My uncle lived in the same house as his mom. She died right before the last presidential election. The night of voting my uncle went to vote and it said my dead grandmother had voted. Someone signed her name and everything. My boss's wife went to go vote once and it said that she had already voted. There is corruption. It exists.
In addition to what you've listed, many places require an ID when you use your bank card, buy certain video games, movies, or CDs, get age-based discounts (like a senior discount), apply for a hunting or fishing license, cash a check, go inside some federal buildings (DOJ for instance), to pick up your child at most schools/daycares, to determine residency for certain community events/hazardous waste disposal days/receive community assistance during the holidays or with food, clothing, etc, and many places ask for identification just to return a purchase.
Identification is a part of life. Most states offer free or reduced fees for those with low incomes, disabilities, or other mitigating circumstances to obtain state IDs. Some state or community agencies also have resources to aid with transportation for those who need it to obtain these services.
Relaxed voter ID requirements has allowed for people who aren't eligible to vote to do so, and has prevented some people from being able to vote because another person had already done so in their name and there's no way to prove that it wasn't them trying to vote a second time.
With all of the things that you need identification for in society and the resources available to aid those who need assistance obtaining it, it doesn't make sense that ID would not be required to cast a vote.
I know I'm beating my head against a wall here, but I'm still going to try, because Thanksgiving is coming up, and if ever there were something to give thanks for, it's that I'm in a position to do all of the above things without thinking twice. Why? Because I have an education, and a job, and money to be able to afford reliable transportation and pretty much any necessity that comes up. Do I have only my own initiative to thank for that? Yeah, pretty much, but I don't happen to think that makes me all that wonderful. I grew up pretty darned poor, but in an unusually self-educated and aware family for our circumstances. But for the Grace of God ...
Going down the list:
Order a drink? Not in years. I'm not all that pretty anymore, and the years show all too well. Besides, drinking in bars is pricey; cheaper to drink at home.
Buy cigarettes? I don't smoke and never have, but I do go to gas stations, and the vast majority of folks who I see purchase tobacco don't get carded -- only the youngsters.
Open a bank account? According to the Federal Reserve, the current percentage of adult unbanked Americans is 5%, but 5% of a darn big country is 13 million adults.
Apply for food stamps or welfare? Yes, you need SOME id, but not photo ID. Most jurisdictions will allow you to present several forms of non-photo id to make a case for who you are.
Apply for a job, unemployment or Social Security? If you work under the table cash only, you won't need an ID, and if that is your employment situation, you won't ever be eligible for unemployment or SS benefits.
Rent or buy a house? Hand $300 in cash over to Aunt Debby's brother to live in his basement this month. If you move every 3 months you are not going to be signing a lease.
Drive a car? If you can reach the pedals you can drive. There are a huge number of people who drive w/o a license because they can't afford to buy insurance. Paying for the ticket is cheaper.
Buy a car? Craigslist doesn't require an ID. In most states you can sign over the title yourself. Lots of families swap license plates around from car to car depending on which one happens to be running.
Rent a car? You don't travel, and you bum rides to get around without wheels, or take the bus.
Get on an airplane? You don't travel by air. (FYI: You don't actually need ID to fly domestically. Takes extra time and a thorough search, but easily do-able.)
Get married? Most don't bother.
Rent a hotel room? SEE you don't travel (Except maybe to visit relatives, and then you sleep on the couch.)
Visit a casino? That's fancy gambling. The gas station has video poker. (Only a very small minority of Americans actually frequent casinos. Most of us have never been in one.)
Buy flu medicine at the pharmacy? Too sick to go to the pharmacy. My neighbor picked it up for me.
Use your bank card? What bank card?
Buy R-rated movies, games or CD's? Only if you're a kid. I've never been carded for any of those things.
Age-based discounts? My wrinkles are my ID. I get those discounts all the time without asking, though I'm actually a few years too young.
Apply for a hunting or fishing license? You ignore the rules that say you need a license, or you fish where none is needed.
Cash a check? You don't do checks; cash only.
Go inside certain federal buildings? You just don't go there, unless you are being escorted by a cop.
Pick up your child from daycare? Grandma knows me by sight.
Pick up your child from school? She rides the bus.
Determine residency for programs? You don't apply for those programs, or you get an exception signed by a social worker who knows you directly.
Return a purchase? If the receipt doesn't work, it doesn't get returned.
Doctor's office or hospital? Only required by insurance, which DOES have a big fraud problem.
Cell phone? No-contract phones don't require any ID; you buy a cash card each month to top up the balance if you don't have a credit card.
Just for the record, needing ID for interacting with government here is a relatively new thing in the post-computer world. Needing a photo ID to vote is tightening requirements, not relaxing them, because once upon a time (within my lifetime!) Americans were NOT asked for photo ID every time they turned around. There is a reason why "
Papers, please!" was a meme used over and over again in movies about nations with authoritarian governments.
I'm sorry that you know someone whose vote was stolen, but truly, that happening with malice aforethought is unusual, and when it does happen is primarily a one-off by a partisan acquaintance who knows that you won't be voting. Most of the time that happens by accident when the person who voted earlier has the same name and the monitor doesn't verify the address. I have a very unusual name, but the polling monitors at my polling place are all elderly and most don't see all that well. MANY times they have directed me to sign the register next to a name that isn't mine.
Free or reduced-fee ID programs are great things, but when they don't advertise, or they require you to round up several other documents to qualify to get it, they are still not all that effective.
PS: I agree with Gumbo that if you really care about the voice of the poor, you should do something to help them get connected. Among other things, I volunteer for registration drives with LOWV (which is non-partisan. YEA!)