TEXAS: Federal Court Rules State’s Voter ID Law Was Written To Intentionally Discriminate Against Minorities

The Austin Statesman reports:



The Texas voter ID law was enacted in 2011 with the intent to discriminate against minority voters, a federal judge ruled Monday. The ruling from U.S. District Judge Nelva Gonzales Ramos followed a July decision by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which said the law had a disproportionate impact on minority voters because they were less likely to have an acceptable government-issued ID, such as a driver’s license, U.S. passport, state handgun permit or military ID card. The appeals court returned the case to Ramos to determine if the law was intentionally written to be discriminatory. On Monday, Ramos said it was. Specifially, the judge said the voter ID law, known as Senate Bill 14, was “unduly strict.”