A federal appeals court upheld on Monday a Texas law that requires voters to provide proof of identification when voting with mail-in ballots.
A three-judge panel reversed a lower district court’s ruling, deciding that the Texas state law did not violate the Civil Rights Act of 1964 because it is crucial to confirm voter eligibility, as required under law.
“Mail-in ballots are not secure,” Judge James Ho wrote in the unanimous opinion.
The ruling included findings that “mail-in ballot fraud is a significant threat.”
“The ID number requirement is obviously designed to confirm that each mail-in ballot voter is precisely who he claims he is. And that is plainly ‘material’ to ‘determining whether such individual is qualified under State law to vote,’” Ho continued.
Fox News wrote:
The Fifth Circuit — the same court that ruled in favor of Texas — has allowed for the tightening of voter rules in the past. Recently, judges with the Fifth Circuit ruled that mail-in ballots must arrive by Election Day to be counted, Politico reported.
Texas’ Election Integrity Protection Act of 2021 was signed in September of that year, following the 2020 presidential election. At the time, several Republican states began cracking down on voter identification. Additionally, according to the Texas Tribune, the law limited local control of elections by prohibiting counties from offering expanded voting options.
“Our precedents compel us to side with Texas. We have made clear that states have a legitimate interest in combating voter fraud, and thus enjoy ‘considerable discretion in deciding what is an adequate level of effectiveness to serve [their] important interests in voter integrity,’” Ho noted.
Sean Moran is a policy reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on X @SeanMoran3.
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