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(Reuters) - The Wisconsin Supreme Court on Thursday upheld a state law requiring voters to have photo identification to cast a ballot, although the law remains blocked by an earlier ruling by a federal judge that it is unconstitutional.

The court wrote in its decision that providing a photo identification at the ballot box does not create a substantial burden to the voter, as claimed by the plaintiffs in the case.

"Photo identification is a condition of our times where more and more personal interactions are being modernized to require proof of identity," the court wrote.

Similar voter identification laws have become a political and racial flashpoint across the United States with Democrats generally opposed and many Republicans backing them.

Republicans argue tighter rules are needed to prevent voter fraud. Democrats say voter fraud is rare and that the rules are instead intended to deter poor people, ethnic minorities and college students from voting - groups that are seen as less likely to have identification and more likely to vote Democrat.