Photo : Joe Raedle ( Getty Images )

Another day, another thwarted attempt at voter suppression from the Republican party.




CBS News reports that a federal judge has formally blocked a photo ID requirement scheduled to begin next year on that grounds that it inordinately targets black and Latino voters. This is not the first attempt at a voter ID law in North Carolina. In fact, voter ID was implemented in North Carolina’s 2016 primaries stemming from a law passed in 2013. This law was then struck down by a federal appeals court after find ing it was passed with intentional racial discrimination. The Root reported in 2017 that the Supreme Court rejected an appeal to reinstate the law. Constitutionality be dam ned, the Republican party p ut a voter ID law on the ballot last year which, after passing with 55% of the vote, was immediately hit with numerous lawsuits including one from the NAACP .

The rules on this version of the law allowed more government IDs to meet the mandate, including those granted by universities . They still didn’t allow government IDs for public assistance programs to be used which disproportionately affected black voters. They are so dedicated to being racist that they refuse to allow all types of government IDs to be used. If it was really about just making sure your are who say you are, public assistance IDs shouldn’t be a problem. Especially since, you know, the government issues them.


I have no doubt that Republicans in North Carolina will not be deterred by this ruling and we will yet again be talking about their thinly veiled attempts to bring back Jim Crow era laws. Republicans, when they can’t win the vote then you can be damn sure they’ll try and steal it.