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US appeals court reinstates Ohio law requiring voters to prove citizenship · GNN Daily Breaking News

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  Speaker 1: A divided federal appeals court has reinstated an Ohio statute
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  Speaker 1: requiring individuals to present documentary proof of citizenship when registering
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  Speaker 1: to vote through state motor vehicle bureaus, lifting a lower
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  Speaker 1: court order that had blocked the rule. In a two-to-one decision,
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  Speaker 1: a panel of the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals granted
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  Speaker 1: an emergency stay requested by state election authorities, allowing the
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  Speaker 1: contentious registration standard to go into effect ahead of upcoming
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  Speaker 1: legislative midterm elections. The ruling pauses a preliminary injunction entered
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  Speaker 1: weeks earlier by a federal district judge, marking a significant
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  Speaker 1: procedural victory for state officials seeking to enforce stricter registration
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  Speaker 1: requirements across government service centers. The legal dispute centers on
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  Speaker 1: a legislative provision enacted as part of a state transportation package.
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  Speaker 1: which instructs Bureau of Motor Vehicles clerks to offer voter
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  Speaker 1: registration materials only to drivers' license applicants who produce physical
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  Speaker 1: evidence of United States citizenship, such as a passport or
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  Speaker 1: birth certificate. Voting rights organizations and civic groups challenge the mandate,
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  Speaker 1: arguing that it imposes an unlawful administrative barrier that violates
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  Speaker 1: the National Voter Registration Act. While a district judge initially
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  Speaker 1: agreed that signed attestations under penalty of perjury fulfill federal
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  Speaker 1: voter eligibility standards, the appellate majority concluded that the plaintiffs
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  Speaker 1: failed to demonstrate immediate irreparable harm or identify specific eligible
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  Speaker 1: citizens prevented from registering by the policy. The appellate ruling
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  Speaker 1: highlights a sharp judicial divide over the limits of state
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  Speaker 1: authority in administering federal elections. In a dissenting opinion, the
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  Speaker 1: panel's minority judge emphasized that federal law mandates motor vehicle
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  Speaker 1: offices to proactively offer voter registration opportunities alongside license applications,
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  Speaker 1: asserting that requiring supplemental physical documentation conflicts directly with federal
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  Speaker 1: standards designed to streamline access. State election leaders praised the
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  Speaker 1: stay order as a crucial victory for safeguarding election integrity.
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  Speaker 1: noting that the requirement applies specifically to registrations processed through
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  Speaker 1: vehicle bureaus while alternative registration methods remain governed by standard
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  Speaker 1: attestation rules. As the underlying lawsuit proceeds toward a full
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  Speaker 1: merits review, the decision ensures the heightened documentation standard remains
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  Speaker 1: active during the final weeks of the registration period.