Judge Rules Against Texas Voter ID, Citing Intentional Discrimination

A judge in Texas has ruled that Texas’ Voter ID law, originally passed in 2011, intentionally discriminates against minorities seeking to vote and has ruled against the state for a second time on the matter.

Via the AP:

“Proponents touted SB 14 as a remedy for voter fraud, consistent with efforts of other states. As previously demonstrated, the evidence shows a tenuous relationship between those rationales and the actual terms of the bill,” Gonzales Ramos wrote.

The ruling is blow to Voter ID advocates who tout these laws in order to combat voter fraud. The Texas law required voters to show one of seven types of ID at the polls, including a concealed handgun license.

The ruling is another blow to Texas Republicans, accused by a panel of judges in San Antonio of racially gerrymandering districts in their last redistricting.

Gonzales Ramos’ decision follows a ruling from a separate three-judge panel in San Antonio last month that found problems in Texas’ voting rights laws. The panel found that Republicans racially gerrymandered some congressional districts to weaken the growing electoral power of minorities. The GOP-controlled Texas Legislature approved the maps in 2011, the same year then-Gov. Rick Perry signed a voter ID law.

Texas is able to appeal Gonzales’ ruling again, but has yet to publicly announce anything.

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