The Department of Justice will sue the state of North Carolina on Monday over the state's new voting law, reports the Huffington Post.
The law, House Bill 589, seeks to "restore confidence in government" through various changes to the state's voting laws, including the implementation of a strict new photo ID requirement, the elimination of seven days of early voting, prohibiting the counting of ballots cast in the wrong precinct, and the stoppage of same-day registration during the state's early voting period.
Republican defenders of the bill have described it as necessary to combat voter fraud, but Democrats, activists, and even high-profile figures such as Colin Powell have argued that voter fraud is next to nonexistent in the state, and have criticized the law for disproportionately impacting people of color.
The DOJ will request the law be blocked from going into effect, and will also request that North Carolina be forced to clear any changes to its voting laws with the federal government under Section 3 of the Voting Rights Act.
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