HARRISBURG — A proposal to require Pennsylvania residents to produce government-issued photo identification each time they vote exposed sharp partisan divides Monday in the state House of Representatives.

Republicans defended the voter ID bill, calling it a sensible way to keep people from casting illegal ballots. Democrats said there was no evidence fraud has been a problem and the net result will be fewer people turning out at the polls.

Lawmakers voted against exempting seniors and military veterans from the photo ID requirement but agreed to make it easier to vote for people who have religious objections to being photographed. Those changes were on a list of more than 100 proposed amendments — nearly all offered by Democrats.

The House adjourned for the day after voting on five of them. A final House vote to send the bill to the Senate could occur as early as Wednesday.

The bill, sponsored by Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-Butler, would require voters to produce valid photo identification, issued by the state or federal governments, every time they vote. Current law requires evidence of identity but not necessarily a government-issued photo ID when someone votes for the first time at a given polling place.

Metcalfe’s proposal would permit voters to cast provisional ballots if they are too poor to afford acceptable ID or if the judge of elections challenges their ID. Those voters would have six days to fill out affidavits in the county courthouse.