Attorney General Eric Holder's office will ask a court to force Texas to get federal permission for voting changes in the next 10 years after the Supreme Court struck down parts of the Voting Rights Act. He acknowledges this is just the beginning.
According to The New York Times:
"This is the department's first action to protect voting rights following the Shelby County decision, but it will not be our last," Mr. Holder said. "Even as Congress considers updates to the Voting Rights Act in light of the court's ruling, we plan, in the meantime, to fully utilize the law's remaining sections to subject states to preclearance as necessary. My colleagues and I are determined to use every tool at our disposal to stand against such discrimination wherever it is found."
The government’s request is expected to be made in a lawsuit Latino state lawmakers filed challenging Texas’s redistricting plan based on the 2010 census.
Holder said evidence that the Texas Legislature had intentionally discriminated against Latinos when redrawing district lines was sufficient to reimpose safeguards for a decade.
Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott already announced plans to fight the decision:
I'll fight #Obama's effort to control our elections & I'll fight against cheating at ballot box. http://t.co/SsGS3hCc6e #tcot #txgop
Greg Abbott
@GregAbbott_TX
I'll fight #Obama's effort to control our elections & I'll fight against cheating at ballot box. http://t.co/SsGS3hCc6e #tcot #txgop
#SCOTUS already approved #VoterID; now #Obama trying to deny it in #Texas http://t.co/ecWOovGHbb #txlege #tcot #txgop
Greg Abbott
@GregAbbott_TX
#SCOTUS already approved #VoterID; now #Obama trying to deny it in #Texas http://t.co/ecWOovGHbb #txlege #tcot #txgop