Missouri voter ID law targeted by Democratic lawsuit News
Missouri voter ID law targeted by Democratic lawsuit

[JURIST] Democratic Party officials in Missouri [JURIST news archive] filed a class-action lawsuit Monday seeking a permanent injunction against the enforcement of a new state law [SB 1014 summary; text] that requires voters to show photo identification at the polls [Missouri Dept. Revenue backgrounder]. The law, signed by Gov. Matt Blunt [governor's press release] last month, allows voters who can't produce ID to cast provisional ballots that will be checked against signatures in election records. The plaintiffs argue that the law violates a provision of the Missouri Constitution [Article X Section 21 text] prohibiting the state government from passing on unfunded mandates to local governments and that it would disenfranchise some voters.

A similar law in Georgia is also being challenged in court. Last week, a federal district judge there issued a preliminary injunction [JURIST report] against the Georgia legislation, suggesting that it may unconstitutionally discriminate against some voters. AP has more.

THIS DAY @ LAW

Indian National Congress founded

The Indian National Congress (INC) was founded on December 28, 1885 in Bombay (now Mumbai), India. In subsequent decades, the so-called Congress Party would advocate for Indian independence from the UK, which was eventually achieved in 1947. The first Prime Minister of independent India, Jawaharlal Nehru, was elected as a member of the INC. Learn more about the history and founding of the Indian National Congress.

Congress recognized Pledge of Allegiance

On December 28, 1945, Congress officially recognized the Pledge of Allegiance and encouraged its recitation in schools. The Pledge was supposedly written in 1892 by Francis Bellamy, a Baptist minister, to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Columbus Day. The words “under God” were added by Congress in 1954. The revised version of the Pledge was the subject of litigation before the United States Supreme Court originally brought by Michael Newdow, a parent who unsuccessfully objected to his daughter's school district policy requiring daily recitation of the Pledge. The court ruled that Newdow had no standing.

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