November 18, 2005

"Justice Plays Down Memo Critical of Ga. Voter ID Plan"

"The Justice Department yesterday played down the importance of a memorandum that concluded that a Georgia voter identification program would hurt black voters, saying the document was a draft that contained old data and faulty analysis.

The memo's conclusions were overruled by senior Justice officials, who announced Aug. 26 that the controversial voter plan could proceed because it was not retrogressive, or harmful to black voters, under the Voting Rights Act. The plan has since been blocked by the federal courts on constitutional grounds.

Justice spokesman Eric Holland said in a statement that the 51-page memo "was an early draft that did not include data and analysis from other voting section career attorneys who recognized the absence of a retrogressive effect." He said the document contained "analytical flaws" and "factual errors."

"The early draft . . . does not represent the quality of factual and legal analysis that the Justice Department expects in a final product," Holland said.

Under the Voting Rights Act of 1965, Georgia and other states with a history of discriminatory elections are required to submit changes to their voting systems for approval by the Justice Department. The GOP-controlled Georgia legislature in March approved a plan that required voters to have photo IDs, a measure that was strongly opposed by black lawmakers and many Democrats."

You can read the article here.

Posted by Randy Riddle at November 18, 2005 08:31 AM