U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder was in Austin, Texas Tuesday night where he promised the Justice Department’s civil rights division will aggressively review new voter ID laws that civil rights advocates say will have a discriminatory impact. This puts the Justice Department smack in the middle of a growing partisan debate over civil rights and minorities’ access to the ballot. Several states, including Texas, have passed new requirements requiring voters to present photo ID before casting their vote. Advocates of the law say it is necessary to prevent voter fraud. Texas is also dealing with a controversial redistricting plan that is headed to the Supreme Court. At the heart of the controversy is whether the states’ new Congressional districts, a result of population growth recorded in the 2010 census, accurately reflect the growth in the states’ minority populations.
Matt Largey, reporter for KUT, Austin Public Radio, has been covering the story.