Civil Rights Groups Join Florida Voting Lawsuit, Will Defend Voting Rights Act

For Immediate Release: Thursday, Oct. 20, 2011

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Washington, D.C. – Yesterday, a three-judge panel of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia ruled that the National Council of La Raza and the League of Women Voters of Florida can intervene as defendants in a legal action over Florida’s new voting law, H.B. 1355, best known for its new, extreme restrictions on volunteer voter registration drives. Represented by attorneys from the Brennan Center for Justice, the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, and leading law firm Bryan Cave LLP, the groups will oppose the law’s new restrictions as discriminatory, and they will defend the federal Voting Rights Act from a constitutional challenge brought by the State of Florida.

The State of Florida brought the lawsuit, Florida v. U.S., seeking the court’s permission under Section Five of the federal Voting Rights Act to implement H.B. 1355’s controversial voting provisions. Because five Florida counties are “covered” jurisdictions under Section Five of the Voting Rights Act, the law must be approved by the U.S. Department of Justice or by a federal district court. Just last week, Florida amended its legal filings to include a new challenge to the federal Voting Rights Act, claiming that even if H.B. 1355 is found to unfairly diminish the voting strength of minorities, Florida should not be subject to Section 5 of the Act and therefore should still be allowed to implement the law.