Dem
51
GOP
49
North Carolina passed a law in 1877. That's already a very bad start. The law made it a felony for convicted felons to vote until their voting rights had been fully restored. That's even worse, since it's hardly a secret that the North Carolina judicial system has a long history of disproportionately targeting Black citizens. That was true from 1877, when the law was passed, through... well, what date is today?
In the Tar Heel State, it is not terribly difficult for a felon's voting rights to be restored. First, they have to complete their sentence, including probation and remuneration. Then, the Department of Corrections has to send some paperwork to the State Board of Elections, and that's that. However, because of the disproportionate conviction rates, Black voters are more likely to have to go through the process and to be required to wait for all the i's to be dotted and t's to be crossed. Further, it's not outside of the realm of possibility that, say, DeShawn's paperwork gets "lost" or moved to the bottom of the pile, while Billy Bubba's paperwork gets pushed through with all due haste.
And, of course, the purpose of the law was to encourage former-felon voters not to take their chances. If you THINK you might be clear by Election Day, but you don't know, you might sit this one out. That is even more true if you are DeShawn, and you know the authorities are likely to throw the book at you, than if you are Billy Bubba, and you know that the authorities are likely to look the other way.
Anyhow, the law is pretty obviously discriminatory (that should really be the default assumption for any North Carolina law passed in 1877), and federal judge Loretta Biggs ruled yesterday that it should be struck from the books. There could be an appeal, but the law is such an obvious stinker that maybe not. Since the ruling affects a relatively small number of people, it probably won't be a factor in the outcome of this year's elections. Although if North Carolina is very close, and it could be, then you never know. (Z)