Texas provided “incomplete” information that does not enable federal officials to determine whether their proposed voter ID law would be discriminatory, the Justice Department said in a letter Wednesday.
Essentially, the letter from DOJ Civil Rights Division Voting Section Chief T. Christian Herren Jr. restarts the clock on when the Department has to make a decision about whether the law signed by Gov. Rick Perry complies with the Voting Rights Act. They have 60 days from when Texas sends them complete information.
Herren writes that Texas did not provide any of the required data on race. Texas said that the voter registration process does not require an applicant to state his or her race, but they are trying to compile the information from Department of Public Safety information as quickly as possible.
A coalition of civil rights organizations has claimed that the voter ID law intentionally discriminates against African-American and Latino voters in the Lone Star state.
Ryan J. Reilly
Ryan J. Reilly is a D.C.-based reporter for TPM. Prior to joining TPM, he worked for a news website covering the Justice Department and was a researcher for Bloomberg News. His email address is ryan(at)talkingpointsmemo.com.
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