Calling B.S. on Voter ID Plan

Today, the 5th Circuit called bullsh!t on a lower court's plan to force Mississippi voters to register by political party and show photo ID at the polls in order to vote. The court struck down U.S. District Judge Allen Pepper's "political" ruling last year requiring the state to re-register all voters and requiring voters to declare a party, or "unaffiliated." The problem with Pepper's plan, which hadd come in response to a Mississippi Democratic Party lawsuit trying to keep Republicans from squatting their primaries, was that it overreacted to a problem that had not been shown to exist, the court said.

[Chief Judge] Jones said whether state law permits party raiding could only be determined if the Democrats tried to stop someone from voting in its primaries. Jones said the "open-ended nature of the dispute" led Pepper to propose a political remedy. "When MSDP actually decides to adopt a closed primary, and when the implementation of state law has a demonstrated impact on the conduct of primary elections, a justifiable case or controversy will exist," the 5th Circuit said. Wednesday's ruling was issued by a panel of three 5th Circuit judges - Jones, W. Eugene Davis and Emilio M. Garza.

Essentially, the court is saying that the solutions were not warranted because the Democratic Party had not actually done anything to keep voters from voting in order for the law to be challenged.

"The state is divided ... We will put the parties out of their litigation misery," wrote Chief Judge Edith H. Jones for the three-judge panel. Jones said if the Democratic Party had taken steps to keep non-Democrats out of its primaries and been stopped, then the party would have had grounds to sue. "It is certainly conceivable, for instance, that the party's mere public announcement of its intent to challenge suspected non-Democrat voters would discourage raiding attempts," wrote Jones.

Clearly, Pepper's solution was political—and ultimately played into the hands of Republicans who think that requiring voter ID and forcing voters to re-register will cripple Democratic Party efforts. The court should be applauded for upholding the notion that voting does not need to be regulated unless and until uncontrollable problems and abuse are shown.

 
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