Supreme Court reinstates another election law challenged for impact on black voters
The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday allowed provisions of a North Carolina election law to take effect that had been stayed by a federal appeals court because of the potential impact on voting opportunities for African Americans.
As a result of the Supreme Court’s action, North Carolina will ban same-day registration and voting, and bar the counting of votes cast in the wrong precincts. Among the publications covering the Supreme Court’s order (PDF) are the Raleigh News & Observer, MSNBC, SCOTUSblog and the Washington Post.
Many view the North Carolina election law as the strictest in the country, MSNBC says.
The Supreme Court’s order reinstates provisions put on hold by the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals based in Richmond, Virginia.
Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sonia Sotomayor dissented from the Supreme Court’s order. Ginsburg’s opinion said the provisions probably wouldn’t have survived a preclearance review that was “effectively nullified” as a result of the Supreme Court’s 2013 decision Shelby County v. Holder.
The U.S. Supreme Court took similar action on Sept. 29 when it allowed cuts to early voting to take effect in Ohio.
