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A federal appeals court has rejected a request to reconsider a ruling that effectively reinstated Wisconsin’s voter ID law.
Those challenging the law had asked the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago to hold another hearing on a three-judge panel’s decision from earlier this month, which lifted an injunction keeping the voter ID requirement from being enforced. The panel denied the motion to reconsider, while the 10 judges for the 7th Circuit split their votes on holding a full hearing on the case.
All five of the judges who voted against the request were appointed by Republicans, while two GOP-appointees did support having a new hearing.
In a statement, American Civil Liberties Union Voting Rights Project director Dale Ho said “Allowing this law to take effect so close to the midterm election is a recipe for chaos, voter confusion, and disenfranchisement. The court could have avoided this pandemonium and given Wisconsin voters a chance to cast their ballots free of obstruction. It failed to do so, and we are evaluating our next step.”
The state Department of Justice did not respond to a call seeking comment.