Attorney General Eric Holder on Thursday threw his weight behind an effort by local civil rights advocates to place Texas back on the list of jurisdictions that have to receive federal approval to change their voting laws.
The Supreme Court recently overturned the formula that singles out specific jurisdictions, as determined by Congress, for preclearance. But advocates are invoking another provision of the law to “bail in” Texas to the preapproval requirement based on its recent attempts at voter discrimination.
An excerpt from Holder’s speech to the National Urban League Annual Conference in Philadelphia, Pa.:
And today I am announcing that the Justice Department will ask a federal court in Texas to subject the State of Texas to a preclearance regime similar to the one required by Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act. This request to “bail in” the state – and require it to obtain “pre-approval” from either the Department or a federal court before implementing future voting changes – is available under the Voting Rights Act when intentional voting discrimination is found. Based on the evidence of intentional racial discrimination that was presented last year in the redistricting case, Texas v. Holder – as well as the history of pervasive voting-related discrimination against racial minorities that the Supreme Court itself has recognized – we believe that the State of Texas should be required to go through a preclearance process whenever it changes its voting laws and practices.
This is the Department’s first action to protect voting rights following the Shelby County decision, but it will not be our last.
