North Carolina: Lawsuit alleges voter ID law is 'discriminatory' against black and Hispanic voters

This Monday, the trial begins on a North Carolina voter ID law after groups that defend civil rights, such as the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), filed a lawsuit more than five years ago alleging it is discriminatory towards black and Hispanic voters.

The law was enacted by the state General Assembly in 2018 and requires all citizens to show photo identification every time they cast their vote at the polls, something the plaintiffs say is unconstitutional. "Absent relief, thousands of North Carolinians will similarly have their right to vote unconstitutionally abridged," the NAACP defense team said in statements reported by the Associated Press.

On the opposite side are Tim Moore and Phil Berger, speaker of the state House of Representatives and president pro tempore of the state Senate, respectively. Their legal team argued that the law does not have a discriminatory connotation, in addition to the fact that it was enacted to ensure the credibility of the votes and to prevent electoral fraud: "The General Assembly enacted [the law] after the People of North Carolina mandated the legislature to create a voter ID law. The bipartisan legislation did not have a discriminatory intent, and Plaintiffs cannot overcome the presumption of legislative good faith."

North Carolina is a key battleground state. In the 2020 election, Donald Trump achieved a slight victory over Joe Biden, whom he surpassed by a margin of 1.4%, or just over 73,000 votes.

The law came into force in August 2023, after it was ratified by the Supreme Court. In the primaries held in March, many voters said they did not see any problems with the photo ID, according to local television station WRAL News. The trial is being held in the city of Winston-Salem and is expected to last several days.