Supreme Court Declines to Interfere with Lower Court Ruling: North Carolina Voter Suppression Law Is Racially Discriminatory and Will Not Stand

Decision Leaves in Place Key Fourth Circuit Court Decision

Today, the U.S. Supreme Court denied certiorari in the North Carolina v. North Carolina State Conference of the NAACP case, leaving in place the circuit court’s decision that North Carolina’s omnibus voter suppression law intentionally discriminated against minorities, in violation of the Constitution and the Voting Rights Act. Gerry Hebert, director of voting rights and redistricting at the Campaign Legal Center (CLC), released the following statement:

“The Supreme Court rightfully rejected taking up a review of North Carolina’s voter suppression law today. This case serves as a sobering reminder of the continuing fight to protect voters from discriminatory voting laws that legislators too often enact with the purpose of burdening minority communities. This was one of the most restrictive voting laws in the country—passed in the direct aftermath of the loss of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act—so it is a huge victory for both North Carolina voters and the country that the Supreme Court will not review the Fourth Circuit’s decision striking down these restrictive laws.”