Justice

Court Strikes Down Voter ID Law In North Carolina

July 29th 2016

North Carolina's voting requirements just got a massive change.

The law that required voters to bring photo identification has been criticized for being "regressive and discriminatory," and was struck down by a federal appeals court, according to Politico.

Twitter reactions show people expressing joy.

Many saw the voter ID law as a barrier to voting.

The law was viewed as racially restrictive, in that was "designed to dampen the growing political clout of African American voters, who participated in record numbers in elections in 2008 and 2012" according to The Washington Post.

The decision, handed down by a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit, was unanimous.

North Carolina lawmakers changed voting rules in 2013 following a Supreme Court decision to remove a requirement that certain states with a history of discrimination must have pre-approval to change any voting regulations, The Post reports. Same-day voter registration, along with early voting and out-of-precinct voting, were also eliminated by legislators at the time.

Several groups, organizations and individuals, including the U.S. Justice Department, the state NAACP, League of Women voters and others sued the state in response to the voter ID law.

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