March, 01 2012, 11:00pm EDT

For Immediate Release
Contact:
Vesna Jaksic, ACLU National, (212) 519-7347, or (212) 549-2666; media@aclu.org
Stacy Harbaugh, ACLU of Wisconsin, (608) 469-5540; sharbaugh@aclu-wi.org
Andy Beres, National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty, (202) 638-2535; aberes@nlchp.org
Beth Huffman, Dechert, (215) 994-6761; beth.huffman@dechert.com
ACLU Adds to Charges in Suit Challenging Wisconsin Voter ID Law
Amended Complaint Asserts Law Violates Voting Rights Act Protections for Minority Voters and Bars Veterans from the Polls
MILWAUKEE, Wis.
An American Civil Liberties Union suit that challenges Wisconsin's voter ID law was amended today to include charges that the law illegally blocks minorities and veterans from accessing the ballot box.
The suit, which was filed in U.S. District Court with the American Civil Liberties Union of Wisconsin, the National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty and Dechert LLP, also seeks an injunction so that many of the named plaintiffs can vote on April 3, when Wisconsin will hold its presidential primary and local elections.
The filing today supplements a federal challenge against one of the most restrictive voter ID laws in the nation and on behalf of a broad spectrum of plaintiffs, including white, black and Latino voters, homeless and low-income citizens, veterans and students.
"We can now demonstrate what we have always suspected--that strict voter ID laws have a more severe negative impact on black and Latino voters," said Jon Sherman, an attorney with the ACLU Voting Rights Project. "The Voting Rights Act was created to combat exactly this type of barrier, and we intend to see it enforced in Wisconsin."
The original suit, filed in December, said that Wisconsin's practice of only allowing certain types of photo ID is a severe and unjustifiable burden and imposes a poll tax on voters.
The amended complaint charges the voter ID law:
* Violates Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, which bans the use of voting practices that have a disparate negative impact on racial and language minorities. Research commissioned by the ACLU indicates the law has a disproportionate impact on Black and Latino voters, who are more likely to lack photo ID accepted for voting in Wisconsin.
* Arbitrarily prevents veterans who only have a Veterans Administration ID card from voting. Wisconsin deems such identification unacceptable.
* Violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment because Wisconsin's photo ID law results in the arbitrary treatment of voters trying to get a state ID card.
Larry Dupuis, legal director of the ACLU of Wisconsin, emphasized the importance of obtaining relief for named plaintiffs. "It is unconscionable that Wisconsin would prevent veterans who possess a valid federal ID from voting," he said. "This is no way to thank them for their service to our country."
One of those veterans is Sam Bulmer, 63, who served in the Air Force for 13 years and is currently homeless. Bulmer lacks a driver's license and cannot obtain a state ID card due to the stringent requirements for a birth certificate in his home state of Kansas.
"Mr. Bulmer's experience is startling, but it's not unique," said Heather Johnson, civil rights attorney at the National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty. "Veterans experience homelessness at an alarming rate, and many will be excluded from the democratic process if this law goes forward. We need to send a clear message to Wisconsin and every other state considering similar legislation: we won't let you silence the voices of homeless veterans."
Also among those suing are two Black Milwaukee residents: Eddie Lee Holloway, Jr., who used to regularly serve as a poll worker, but whose incorrect birth certificate will prevent him from getting a state ID and voting; and Shirley Brown, who was born in Louisiana at home by midwife and as a result, has no record of her birth.
"All citizens should be free to vote," said Neil Steiner, an attorney with Dechert LLP. "Disenfranchising eligible voters is not a valid rationale for a law."
The defendants include Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker; Wisconsin Transportation Secretary Mark Gottlieb, who oversees the Department of Motor Vehicles and members of the Wisconsin Government Accountability Board, which oversees election laws.
Attorneys on the case include Sherman, Laughlin McDonald, and Nancy Abudu of the ACLU Voting Rights Project, Dupuis and Karyn Rotker of the ACLU of Wisconsin, Johnson and Karen Cunningham of the National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty and Neil Steiner, Craig Falls, and Diane Princ of Dechert LLP.
To read the complaint in Frank v. Walker, go to: www.aclu.org/voting-rights/frank-v-walker-amended-complaint
For more information about voter suppression, go to: www.aclu.org/voter-suppression-america
This press release is available at: www.aclu.org/voting-rights/aclu-adds-charges-suit-challenging-wisconsin-voter-id-law
The American Civil Liberties Union was founded in 1920 and is our nation's guardian of liberty. The ACLU works in the courts, legislatures and communities to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to all people in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States.
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This is a breaking story… Please check back for possible updates...
Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez ended a week of speculation on Monday by announcing that she will not seek the ranking member position on the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
The New York Democrat, who last year ran for ranking member and lost to Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), told reporters, "It's actually clear to me that the underlying dynamics in the caucus have not shifted with respect to seniority as much as I think would be necessary, so I believe I'll be staying put at Energy and Commerce."
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An internationally acclaimed digital news outlet in El Salvador said Monday that the administration of Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele is preparing to arrest a number of its journalists following the publication of an interview with two former gang leaders who shed new light on a power-sharing agreement with the U.S.-backed leader and self-described "world's coolest dictator."
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While the pact between Bukele and gang leaders is well-known in El Salvador, El Faro—which has long been a thorn in the president's side—was the first media outlet to air video of gangsters acknowledging the agreement.
As El Faro reported:
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Advocates for student protesters and other critics of the U.S.-backed Israeli assault on the Gaza Strip celebrated on Monday after Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel dropped all charges against seven people arrested last year at the University of Michigan amid allegations of bias that the Democrat rejected.
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The courtroom was packed with spectators, many of them wearing keffiyehs. They burst into applause at the decision and began chants of "Free Palestine."
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Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) similarly declared, "Good news for our university student communities!"
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