Voters will be required to bring a valid identification card when they vote in the March 15 primary election. A federal judge denied an injunction sought by the NAACP that would have held the law from effect while the case is decided. Both the NC House Legislative Elections Oversight Committee and groups supporting the suit against the law issued statements yesterday.
Press release from Elections Oversight Committee Co-Chairmen:
Joint Legislative Elections Oversight Committee Co-Chairmen Rep. David Lewis (R-Harnett) and Sen. Bob Rucho (R-Mecklenburg) issued the following joint statement Friday after a federal judge upheld the state’s hugely popular photo voter ID requirement for the upcoming primary election:
“We appreciate the court’s thoughtful opinion, which not only rejects the plaintiffs’ desperate, partisan attempts to block a commonsense photo ID requirement just weeks before early voting is set to begin, but also validates the state’s comprehensive two-year effort to educate all North Carolinians about the new law.
“Like the overwhelming majority of North Carolinians who support photo ID, we are pleased voters will have this reasonable requirement in place for the March primary to help preserve the integrity of their elections.”
Press release from Advancement Project:
Today, a federal judge denied a motion to halt North Carolina’s restrictive photo ID requirement from going into effect before the presidential primary election in March. While the preliminary injunction would have ensured the law was temporarily blocked for the primaries while the case proceeded, there is still hope that the restrictive ID requirement will be overturned following a full review by the court. On January 25, Judge Thomas D. Schroeder of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina will hear the North Carolina State Conference of the NAACP’s challenge to the ID requirement in a trial in Winston-Salem.
“The photo ID requirement is discriminatory and should be overturned,” said the Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II, President of the North Carolina State Conference of the NAACP and architect of the Forward Together Moral Movement. “While the legislature attempted to mask their discriminatory intentions behind inadequate modifications to the law, the impact of the law remains the same: voters of color will lose their right to vote at disproportionate rates. This is defies the logic of an inclusive democracy.”
North Carolina’s voter ID requirement is one of the many provisions of the state’s monster voter suppression law, H.B. 589. Knowing the ID requirement would likely not pass constitutional review, the legislature modified the law just weeks before the July 2015 trial challenging H.B. 589. The trial proceeded regarding the law’s other provisions, including the shortening of the early voting period, a ban on same-day registration, the prohibition of ballots cast out of precinct from being counted, and the elimination of a successful pre-registration program for 16- and 17-year olds. The review of the photo ID requirement, however, was tabled until this year.
Under the modified ID requirement, voters who do not have one of the limited forms of accepted ID — due to a “reasonable impediment” — can sign a declaration indicating why they were unable to obtain ID and cast a provisional ballot. Advancement Project, along with co-counsel Kirkland & Ellis, LLP and attorneys Irving Joyner and Adam Stein, represent the NC NAACP in their challenge to H.B. 589 – including the modified requirement.
“We are not dissuaded by today’s ruling,” said Advancement Project Co-Director Penda D. Hair. “We have amassed overwhelming evidence that the photo ID requirement remains an undue and illegal burden on voters of color in North Carolina. This evidence, coupled with the profound stories of those who have been impacted by this restrictive measure, will prove the true cost of this discriminatory law.”
“Until this law is completely overturned, we will continue to do everything in our power to help Carolinians exercise their right to vote in the upcoming primary and subsequent elections,” said Rev. Barber
Advancement Project is a multi-racial civil rights organization. Founded by a team of veteran civil rights lawyers in 1999, Advancement Project was created to develop and inspire community-based solutions based on the same high quality legal analysis and public education campaigns that produced the landmark civil rights victories of earlier eras.
Penda Hair needs to get her a** OUT of NC beeswax…she is a heinous woman. And the ‘rev’ Barber needs to understand that Voter ID photo IDs are NOT discriminatory and the law will NOT be overturned! 70+% of the people want it!!!