Legislators Who Stand to Benefit from Repressive Voter ID Law File Briefs in Support of Supreme Court Appeal

Earlier today, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced that 32 Members of Congress and a coalition of 10 States filed Amicus Briefs urging the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold Texas’ Voter ID Law.

Details can be found here. 

Following is a statement from Common Cause Texas Executive Director Anthony Gutierrez:

“Every Texan has a right to have their voice heard at the ballot box on Election Day. It is disappointing to see Members of the Texas congressional delegation joining with colleagues in support of a voter ID law the District Court found – and the Fifth Circuit echoed –  would disenfranchise hundreds of thousands of Texans. It is long past time that these congressional representatives make an effort to represent every Texan not just those they think are most likely to vote for them.

Even if the state had been making a good effort at following the court’s order for this election by getting the word out about ID requirements, this filing would cause confusion. But the sad fact is that the state has been doing an exceptionally bad job of getting the word out and are also now also doing everything they can to argue against the court ruling they’re supposed to be publicizing. These actions make it painfully obvious why we’re seeing such massive confusion as Texans try to exercise their right to vote. 

Courts across the country in recent months have strongly condemned repressive Voter ID laws like the one in Texas, recognizing that they are designed to allow legislators to determine which Americans will be able to vote on Election Day.

Common Cause Texas hopes that the Supreme Court will follow suit in recognizing the right of every Texan to vote for the candidate of their choice.”