North Carolina Voter ID Law Enacted With 'Discriminatory Intent': Federal Court

A federal appeals court struck down North Carolina's voter identification law on Friday, saying the provisions were enacted with "discriminatory intent."

Along with the identification requirement, the law prevented same-day voter registration and preregistration, which allowed voters to register to vote before they turned 18.

"In evaluating the massive record in this case, the court issued extensive factual findings," the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit said, referencing a district court ruling in April that upheld the law. "We appreciate and commend the court on its thoroughness. The record evidence provides substantial support for many of its findings; indeed, many rest on uncontested facts. But, for some of its findings, we must conclude that the district court fundamentally erred. In holding that the legislature did not enact the challenged provisions with discriminatory intent, the court seems to have missed the forest in carefully surveying the many trees. This failure of perspective led the court to ignore critical facts bearing on legislative intent, including the inextricable link between race and politics in North Carolina."

The law required voters to show photo identification while casting ballots. As explained by Reuters, "critics argued that the law enacted by North Carolina and several other states are designed to drive down turnout by minorities and poor people who rely more on flexible voting methods and are less likely to possess state-issued photo IDs."

Judge Diana Motz, who wrote the opinion for the court, said voting in North Carolina is racially polarized in many parts of the state.

"In North Carolina, restriction of voting mechanisms and procedures that most heavily affect African-Americans will predictably redound to the benefit of one political party and to the disadvantage of the other," Motz wrote.

The law was signed by Gov. Pat McRory in 2013 in an effort to combat voter fraud.

In the opinion, Motz noted that the day after the U.S. Supreme Court issued a ruling that states did not need to obtain pre-clearance from the Justice Department to enact changes in their voter laws, a leader of the party announced an intention to enact an "omnibus" election law. Before enacting the law, the legislature requested data on the use, by race, of a number of voting practices.

"Upon receipt of the race data, the General Assembly enacted legislation that restricted voting and registration in five different ways, all of which disproportionately affected African Americans," the opinion stated.

In a statement, the North Carolina Board of Elections said barring an appeal or a different outcome, photo ID will not be required in the upcoming general election.

"In North Carolina, restriction of voting mechanisms and procedures that most heavily affect African Americans will predictably redound to the benefit of one political party and to the disadvantage of the other," the opinion said.

The ruling is expected to help Democratic nominee for president Hillary Clinton in the swing state.

"Photo IDs are required to purchase sudafed, cash a check, board an airplane or enter a federal court room. Yet, three Democratic judges are undermining the integrity of our elections while also maligning our state. We will immediately appeal and also review other potential options," McCrory said in a statement.

The American Civil Liberties Union applauded the ruling.

“It is a major victory for North Carolina voters and for voting rights,” Dale Ho, director of the ACLU's Voting Rights Project, said in a statement.

Similar rulings have been issued recently in Texas and in Wisconsin.

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