Motz said the new provisions of the law targeted “African-Americans with nearly surgical precision”. Extending early voting is a great idea because it aids getting the elderly and others to the polls; however, allowing out of precinct voting should receive a closer look because registered voters receive a notification in the mail informing them of the location to cast their ballot.
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“We can not ignore the record evidence that, because of race, the legislature enacted one of the largest restrictions of the franchise in modern North Carolina history”.
Last month the 4th Circuit panel agreed, saying the voter bill “impose cures for problems that did not exist… the asserted justifications can not and do not hide the State’s true motivation”.
Cooper personally opposed the law and decided not to keep defending it after the 4th Circuit ruling. Outside counsel for the governor and legislative leaders who are already involved in the case can handle any appeals, Cooper said, although he pointed out that would cost additional money and confuse voters. The ruling blocks voter ID and restores preregistration, a week of early voting, same-day registration, and out-of-precinct provisional voting. “It is a major victory for North Carolina voters and for voting rights”.
Fitton expects North Carolina will appeal the case to the U.S. Supreme Court. She stated that Judge Schroeder knew the law was based on a racially discriminatory factor and also constituted a violation of the right of the voters but still went ahead and published a 485-page book to back the Voter ID law.
District Court Judge Thomas Schroeder, who ruled in favor of the Voter ID law in April, is a Republican appointee.
North Carolina NAACP president, Rev. William Barber, center at podium, gestures as he is surrounded by supporters during a news conference at the Third Street Bethel AME Church in Richmond, Va., Tuesday, June 21, 2016. Supporters say they photo IDs are needed to combat voter fraud.
“We can only wonder if the intent is to reopen the door for voter fraud” in November’s federal and state elections, Berger and Moore said in a joint statement.
A three-judge panel of the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond on Friday ruled that the voter identification requirement was enacted “with discriminatory intent” and must be blocked.
These changes come as judges across the US are blocking several Republican-controlled states from imposing stricter election rules in November. The most comprehensive study of fraud by voter impersonation, done by law professor Justin Leavitt, found only 31 credible incidents among 1 billion ballots cast since 2000 in state, local and federal elections.
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But critics immediately (and correctly) predicted said that the deeply divided Congress would never act, and they said the true effect of the decision would be to essentially gut the provision that required the federal government to “preclear” – or approve -any voting changes in certain states. As African-Americans disproportionately use the first few days of early voting and same-day registration, they are also much more likely to lack the means of photo identification.
