The U.S. Justice Department announced Thursday that it had filed a lawsuit against the State of Texas and the Texas Secretary of State over Texas’s new voting act, Senate Bill 1, which was signed into law in September.
The bill changed the state’s election process in several ways. It bans drive-thru voting and implements new regulations for early voting hours, including a ban on 24-hour voting. The bill includes measures barring voters from being sent unsolicited absentee ballot applications and bars election officials from promoting mail-in voting.
The most controversial measures include new ID requirements for voting and the creation of possible criminal penalties for those who assist voters in filling out their ballots.
The Justice Department’s lawsuit argues that the bill violates the Voting Rights Act by restricting the assistance that voters who have a disability or cannot read or write can receive from poll workers.
Furthermore, the department contends that the bill’s requirement that mail-in ballots and mail ballot request forms be rejected due to certain errors or omissions violates the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Under the new law, voters’ ballots or applications would be rejected if they fail to include their current driver’s license number, an election identification number, or part of a Social Security number on the form.
The entire text of the bill with the complete list of changes can be found here.
The lawsuit comes after Attorney General Merrick Garland emphasized in a June speech that the Justice Department would prioritize combatting voting restrictions and double its staff to work on the issues.
“Our democracy depends on the right of eligible voters to cast a ballot and to have that ballot counted,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “The Justice Department will continue to use all the authorities at its disposal to protect this fundamental pillar of our society.”
Texas Governor Greg Abbott responded to news of the lawsuit on Twitter with confidence in the bill’s legality.
“Bring it.” He wrote. “The Texas election integrity law is legal. It INCREASES hours to vote. It does restrict illegal mail ballot voting. Only those who qualify can vote by mail. It also makes ballot harvesting a felony. In Texas, it is easier to vote but harder to cheat.”