NAACP wants voter ID trial delayed if injunction denied

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) – A civil rights group wants an upcoming voter ID trial delayed if a federal judge otherwise refuses to block the photo identification mandate from being implemented for North Carolina’s March 15 primary.

The state chapter of the NAACP and allied voters this week asked the judge to postpone the Jan. 25 trial in Winston-Salem although they had previously supported the trial date. This request is portrayed as an alternative if Judge Thomas Schroeder denies their earlier request to prevent the photo ID requirement from taking effect.

The NAACP lawyers says a delay would allow them to collect new evidence they expect as state election officials educate the public and train precinct workers about the photo ID mandate. Those who sue call the voter ID requirement discriminatory. State attorneys disagree.

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