U.S. Supreme Court to hear Ohio's bid to revive voter purge policy

[Eugene]

Source: Reuters

The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday agreed to hear Ohio's appeal of a lower court ruling that blocked the Republican-led state's policy of purging people from voter-registration lists if they do not regularly cast ballots because it violated federal law.

Civil liberties advocates who challenged Ohio's policy said it illegally erased voters from registration rolls and unlawfully disenfranchised minorities and poor people who tend to back Democratic candidates. The justices will review a U.S. appeals court ruling that Ohio's policy ran afoul of a 1993 law called the National Voter Registration Act, which Congress passed to make it easier for Americans to register to vote.

A Reuters analysis last year found that in Ohio's three largest counties, which include Cleveland, Cincinnati and Columbus, voters were struck from the rolls in Democratic-leaning neighborhoods at roughly twice the rate as in Republican neighborhoods under the policy.

Ohio officials argued that canceling registrations for voters deemed inactive for six years helped keep voting rolls current and accurate, clearing out those who have moved away or died. In September 2016, ahead of the U.S. presidential election, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati ruled that the policy was unlawful.

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Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-court-voters-idUSKBN18Q1J7

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SUPREME COURT | Tue May 30, 2017 | 10:43am EDT
By Andrew Chung

[ATL Ebony]

1. Scum of the earth, how many hoops will satisfy you in disenfranchising voters.

If the died then they will not be voting. If the moved they'll register in another polling place. Why make voters re-register unnecessarily. It's already been ruled unlawful in 2016 and it's still unlawful in 2017.

Thomas shocked the world a few weeks ago when he agreed with Dems to protect voter rights. I wonder how he'll vote this time.

[procon]

2. This is all they have left now.

Republicans can't win elections without artificially tipping the scales in their favor. Now that the discriminatory laws they passed have been ruled unconstitutional, the U.S. Supreme Court is their last, desperate stand.

It's a big risk, and one they might come to regret when the whole mess blows up in their faces if the Justices rule against them and support the Appeals Court decision. A ruling against Ohio's voter suppression tactics would affect every other Republican held state that has passed similar laws and level the playing field. That will be a huge victory for Democrats.

[maxrandb]

3. "The U.S. Supreme Court is their last, desperate stand"

Hmmmm...

Just a coincidence that they stole a Supreme Court vacancy, isn't it?