A federal judge on Friday found partially in favor of two Native American tribes in their lawsuit against the Secretary of State’s Office and two Nevada counties in a voter disenfranchisement case. Federal Judge Miranda Du released her ruling late Friday afternoon which found in favor of the Pyramid Lake and Walker River Paiute tribes’ request for early in-person polling in Nixon and Schurz and Election Day in-person polling at Nixon. She denied the request for satellite voter registration sites in both places. “In this case, while injunctive relief would impose costs upon defendants, there is no indication it would interfere with the state’s ability to move forward with the November election as scheduled,” Du said in the ruling. “The public interest is served by the enforcement of the (Voting Rights Act of 1965) and the inclusion of protected classes in the political process.”
The Washoe County District Attorney’s Office released a statement that said it was still reviewing the ruling and would decide whether to appeal or comply. “Washoe County believes that its decisions in regard to all locations for early voting and Election Day voting for the 2016 General Election were based on population, fairness, and in accordance with controlling federal and state law,” the statement reads.
Washoe County Registrar Luanne Cutler said Friday before the ruling was released that her office would do as directed by the court.
Walker River Chairman Bobby Sanchez and Pyramid Lake Chairman Vinton Hawley said in a joint statement they looked forward to working with the county.
Full Article: Judge rules partially in favor of tribes in federal suit.