MADISON, Wis. — Opponents of Wisconsin’s voter photo identification law asked the US Supreme Court on Thursday to take emergency action and block the requirement ahead of the Nov. 4 election, arguing there isn’t enough time to implement the new rules.
The request comes less than five weeks before an election involving the closely watched race between Republican Governor Scott Walker, who supports the law, and Democratic challenger Mary Burke. State election officials have been scrambling to prepare since the US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit ruled last month that the law should be in effect while the court considers the latest legal challenge.
Meanwhile, North Carolina attorneys also asked the Supreme Court on Thursday to allow the state to carry out two key voting changes for the fall election.
The lawyers representing the state and Governor Pat McCrory asked the court to block Wednesday’s decision of the US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit that said the state could not implement the changes.
The majority on a Fourth Circuit panel ruled Wednesday that eliminating same-day registration in North Carolina during the in-person early voting period and counting votes cast outside of a voter’s assigned precinct on Election Day should be set aside while litigation continues. Other changes to the law passed last year were upheld.
The groups behind the Wisconsin lawsuit, the American Civil Liberties Union and the Advancement Project, argue that the 2011 law is unconstitutional, in part because it unfairly burdens poor and minority voters who may not have valid IDs.
The law hasn’t been enforced since the February 2012 primary because of legal challenges, and opponents argue that enforcing it on short notice will create chaos at the polls and disenfranchise voters.