U.S.

Judge Won't Block North Dakota Voter Address Requirement

One Native American tribe argued the state's street address requirement is unconstitutional.

Judge Won't Block North Dakota Voter Address Requirement
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A federal judge denied a last-minute request Thursday to block part of North Dakota's voter ID law ahead of the upcoming midterm elections.

The state requires all voters show up to polling locations with an ID that lists their name, birthday and a current residential street address. 

That last one has been causing issues for some Native Americans, because many reservations don't have street names. So they use P.O. boxes instead. 

North Dakota officials say that voters who don't have an official address can get one assigned to them quickly by calling their local 911 coordinator. But in their lawsuit to try to get the address requirement blocked, the Spirit Lake Tribe argued that system is "deeply flawed" and produces "conflicting and inaccurate results." 

But the judge ruled that it's too close to the Nov. 6 election to make any major changes to the voter law.

Despite his ruling, there are a number of Native American tribes in the state that've been working to make sure their members can vote on Tuesday by handing out valid IDs. The Associated Press reported more than 2,000 of those credentials have been issued so far.