Justice Department Rejects Texas Voter ID Law
The Department of Justice is objecting to a Texas voter identification law on the grounds that the state did not adequately demonstrate that the law will not have a discriminatory effect on minority voters.
"Under Section 5, the Attorney General must determine whether the submitting authority has met its burden of showing that the proposed changes have neither the purpose nor the effect of denying or abridging the right to vote on account of race of color or membership in a language minority group," Assistant Attorney General Thomas Perez wrote on Monday in a letter to the Texas Director of Elections.
Texas Republican Gov. Rick Perry signed the law -- which requires voters to present a government-issued photo ID -- last year, but it also needed to be cleared by the Obama administration, which is why the Justice Department reviewed it. Texas's attorney general has also requested that a federal court approve the law.
The Justice Department also rejected a South Carolina voter ID law last year.
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