Latino group appeals voter ID ruling

Howard Fischer, Capitol Media Services

A Latino civil rights group is asking federal appellate judges to overturn a lower court ruling upholding Arizona’s voter ID requirements.

Nina Perales, attorney for the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund, said she hopes to convince the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that the provisions in the 4-year-old law, have a much greater impact on minorities than others. That, she said, violates federal laws.

In a ruling last month, U.S. District Court Judge Roslyn Silver upheld the requirement to prove citizenship to register to vote and to provide certain forms of identification to cast a ballot at the polls. She accepted the arguments by the state that the provisions are necessary to protect the integrity of the voting process.

But the group’s president, John Trasvina, said he sees something more sinister in the requirements.

“It is no surprise that citizen voter suppression exists in the state that is also one of the three most hostile to immigrants,â€