Federal court: Texas voter ID law intended to discriminate

A Texas voter ID law was passed with with the intention of discriminating against minority voters, a federal judge ruled Monday.

The judge said that the photo identification bill passed in Texas in 2011 was intended to discriminate “despite its proponents’ assertions that it was necessary to combat voter fraud,” according to the court documents.

“Upon reconsideration and a re-weighing of the evidence in conformity with the Fifth Circuit’s opinion, the court holds that the evidence found ‘infirm’ did not tip the scales,” Judge Nelva Gonzales Ramos wrote in her ruling on Monday.

{mosads}Ramos had previously made a similar ruling, but was instructed to review the issue again after Texas appealed the decision, The New York Times reported.

The ruling means Texas could be put on a so-called pre-clearance scheme of the Voting Rights Act, TalkingPointsMemo reported.

In that case, in order to make any changes to its voting protocols, Texas would have to clear them with the federal government.