The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday ruled that two provisions of the 2013 North Carolina voting law, commonly known as the voter ID law, cannot be enforced in the fall election, reversing a lower court decision in August.
Gov. Pat McCrory said in a statement Wednesday that he has instructed the state’s lawyers to appeal the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court.
If the ruling is allowed to stand, same-day registration would resume, as would out-of-precinct voting, which allows voters to cast a ballot at any polling site in their county of residence. The panel of judges said the law’s provisions would disproportionately impact minority voters.
Early voting was unaffected and will still last for 10 days, said Josh Lawson, spokesman for the N.C. Board of Elections. The provision of the law requiring a photo ID to vote won’t take effect until 2016.
The board is working to keep voters informed on the situation and eliminate possible confusion, Lawson said.
“We encourage voters to stay tuned to possible changes,” he said.