NC Appeals Court Blocks ‘Racially Discriminatory’ Voter ID Law

NORTH CAROLINA — North Carolina’s new voter identification law has been temporarily blocked from implementation because it was likely intended to racially discriminate against the state’s African American voters, a three-judge panel on the North Carolina Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday.

The panel issued a preliminary injunction Tuesday, which means that voters will not need identification to cast their ballots in the March primary elections, and perhaps not for the November general election, either, should the case remain in the courts by then, The Charlotte Observer said.

In November 2018, 55 percent of North Carolina voters approved a constitutional amendment requiring voters provide identification in order to vote. During that same election, the GOP lost its veto-proof super majority; however, Republicans quickly pushed through the specific provisions of the new law during a lame-duck session before new lawmakers could be sworn in.

In Tuesday’s decision, the appeals court said the new law, as written, has a “disproportional impact on African American voters.”

In Tuesday's ruling, three judges said evidence indicated that the Republican-led General Assembly specifically included types of identification requirements that African Americans disproportionately lack, such as passport, an employee identification card issued by a state or local government entity, or a military ID.

“Such a choice speaks more of an intention to target African American voters rather than a desire to comply with the newly created amendment in a fair and balanced manner,” the court said in its opinion.

The full ruling may be found here.