By Ashley Lopez, KUT News for Audio Texas
AUSTIN – The U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals has struck-down the Texas voter ID law.
This decision from the 15-judge panel is more than 200 pages long — and it’s detailed and complicated. But Jen Clark – an attorney with the Brennan Center for Justice – says the court was clear about its thoughts on the Texas voter ID law.
“One takeaway from the decision is that the law as written cannot stand and cannot be enforced as it’s on the books at the polls this November because it has a racially discriminatory effect.”
Clark and her group were part of a massive legal team representing the plaintiffs in this case. For years they’ve been asking the courts to strike it down because it creates barriers to the polls by enforcing a short list of ID’s that can be presented at a voting location. The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals – which is considered a largely conservative court – says that law needs to go back to a lower court, so that it can be changed. Governor Greg Abbott says the court made the wrong conclusions and says he will continue to fight voter fraud in the state.
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