5th Circuit Court of Appeals Unanimously Rules On Texas Law

Well now, buckle up, because this one is a pretty big deal — not just for Texas, but for the ongoing tug-of-war over how elections are run in America.

The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals just handed the Biden administration a unanimous loss in its fight against a Texas election law. And the message from the court? Loud and clear: states have the right to make sure mail-in voters are actually who they say they are.

Let’s set the scene. Back in September 2021, Governor Greg Abbott signed the Election Integrity and Protection Act, requiring mail-in voters to include a state ID number or partial Social Security number on their ballot. Basically, it added a second layer of verification — because, as Judge James Ho bluntly put it, “mail-in ballots are not secure.”

Of course, this didn’t sit well with the Biden administration and several left-leaning organizations, including the League of Women Voters, who immediately sued. They argued the requirement violated the Civil Rights Act of 1964, specifically the so-called “materiality provision.”

And for a moment, they got their way. In November 2023, U.S. District Judge Xavier Rodriguez struck down that part of the law. But then came the appeals. In December, the 5th Circuit hit pause on that ruling, and now? They’ve fully reversed it.

Judge Ho’s opinion didn’t just reject the administration’s challenge — it basically torched the idea that requiring an ID number is some sort of unnecessary barrier. He pointed out that voter names and addresses are already public information, easily accessible to anyone who asks for them.

Without additional verification, mail-in ballots become dangerously vulnerable. “Any person can request and receive that information about a registered voter, use that information to apply for a mail-in ballot, and then cast the ballot, with minimal risk of detection,” Ho warned.

And here’s the key line: “States have a legitimate interest in combating voter fraud,” Ho wrote, emphasizing that Texas — and by extension, other states — has “considerable discretion” in deciding what measures are adequate to secure elections.

So, what does this mean? In the short term, Texas keeps its mail-in ID requirements. In the long term? This could bolster states across the country that want to tighten their mail-in ballot rules, especially as we head into another high-stakes election season.