Justice Dept. Hits Texas Voter-ID Law

By: Lynette Holloway | Posted: March 13, 2012 at 9:20 AM

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder (Karen Bleier/Getty Images)

On Monday the Justice Department's civil rights division blocked a new photo-ID requirement for voters in Texas because many Hispanic voters do not have the proper identification, the Associated Press reports.

Texas follows South Carolina as the second state in recent months to become embroiled in a court battle with the Justice Department over new photo ID requirements for voters.

Photo ID laws have become a point of contention in the 2012 elections. Liberal groups have said the requirements are the product of Republican-controlled state governments and are aimed at disenfranchising people who tend to vote Democratic — African-Americans, Hispanics, people of low-income and college students.

Proponents of such legislation say the measures are aimed at combating voter fraud. But advocacy groups for minorities and the poor dispute that and argue there is no evidence of significant voter fraud.

In regard to Texas, "I cannot conclude that the state has sustained its burden" of showing that the newly enacted law has neither a discriminatory purpose nor effect, Thomas E. Perez, the head of the Justice Department's civil rights division, said in a letter to the Texas secretary of state.

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbot has said the Obama administration is hostile to laws like the one passed last year in Texas.

The National Conference of State Legislatures called the voter ID issue "the hottest topic of legislation in the field of elections in 2011," with legislation introduced in 34 states.

The department had been reviewing the Texas law since last year and discussing the matter with state officials. In January, Texas officials sued U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, seeking a court judgment that the state's recently enacted voter ID law was not discriminatory in purpose or effect ...

This is an important step not just for the voters in Texas but also for people facing these regressive laws in states across the nation. We hope this is a sign of more to come.

Read more at the Associated Press.

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