ABBOTT V. DOJ

Feds Sue Texas to Block Restrictive New Voting Law

The suit is one of several the Justice Department has filed to overturn GOP-backed laws that narrow the options for residents to cast their ballots.

The federal government sued Texas on Thursday to block the state’s new law restricting voting access, one of several suits the Justice Department has filed against multiple states to overturn Republican-backed laws that narrow the options for residents to cast their ballots. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signed Senate Bill 1 into law in September, curbing voting by mail and prohibiting 24-hour polling places, among other limitations. “The challenged provisions will disenfranchise eligible Texas citizens who seek to exercise their right to vote,” the DOJ says in its complaint. Abbott responded: “Bring it. The Texas election integrity law is legal.” The DOJ already has a pending high-profile suit against Texas, a challenge to the state’s law banning abortion past six weeks and deputizing private citizens to enforce the measure with financial incentives.