Judge denies request to delay lawsuit against Texas voter ID

AUSTIN, Texas – A long-running lawsuit over Texas’ contentious voter ID law will move forward in federal court, even as the Republican-controlled Legislature considers how best to modify it.

A federal judge on Friday denied a request from the U.S. Justice Department and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to delay the case.

The Trump administration joined with Texas to ask that next week’s hearing be postponed until June when the Texas Legislature’s session finishes. A bill revising the strict voter ID law was filed this week to address previous court rulings that found it discriminatory against poor, largely minority Texans.

The request nonetheless was the latest signal that the Trump administration may scrap the federal government’s opposition to the law. President Barack Obama’s Justice Department had joined civil rights groups contesting the law.