In a move not too surprising, the three-judge panel in the Texas voter ID case also has asked the parties to brief the question of whether the court should delay taking up questions about the constitutionality of section 5 of the Voting Rights Act given Supreme Court’s grant of cert. in Shelby County v. Holder.
The court gave the parties until November 29 to file position papers. In the Texas case, Texas had been arguing that section 5 was unconstitutional at least as applied to the Texas statute if not in all cases and situations (the broader question being taken up by the Supreme Court and Texas’ alternative position).
The court’s show cause order can be found here.
In the mean time, DOJ and intervenors in the Texas voter ID case submitted their final briefs on the constitutionality question. Links to the briefs can be found below:
See also the redistricting case. For this one, I think the argument to wait is much clearer.
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