Supreme Court Again Upholds Voting Restrictions

For the second time in two weeks the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a law making it harder to vote.

Yesterday, the Court reversed a lower court ruling that had blocked restrictions on same-day registration and out-of-precinct balloting in North Carolina. A week earlier the court delayed the start of early voting in Ohio, one day before it was scheduled to begin.

“Twice in two weeks the Supreme Court has taken an extraordinary step to reinstate controversial voting changes, which were blocked by lower courts,” said Wendy Weiser, director of the Democracy Program. “These laws could make it harder for tens of thousands of Americans to vote. Courts should serve as a bulwark against rollbacks to voting rights, not an obstacle to the ballot box.”

Since the 2010 election, new voting restrictions are slated to be in place in 22 states. North Carolina and Ohio are two of seven states where courts will play a crucial role in 2014. The Brennan Center filed an amicus brief in the North Carolina case.

See all of the Center’s Election 2014 resources.

For more information, or to schedule an interview, please contact Erik Opsal at erik.opsal@nyu.edu or 646–292–8356.