Mar 27, 2006 5:59 am US/Central
New Orleans Election Under Judicial Review
NEW ORLEANS (AP) ―
With less than a month before New Orleans' first elections since Hurricane Katrina, the vote's plan — and even the date — are still in dispute.
Civil rights groups were expected to return to federal court Monday to try to block the April 22 mayoral election, arguing that too many black residents scattered by Katrina will be unable to take part.
U.S. District Judge Ivan Lemelle, who earlier turned aside pleas for a postponement, has agreed to hold a hearing to reconsider the dismissal.
The election has turned into a test of the city's, and the nation's, ability to hold an election in the midst of rebuilding a major city with more than half of the population displaced. The vote also could help determine the city's rebuilding plan.
Mayor Ray Nagin, who has been criticized in some quarters for his response to the hurricane, is running for re-election in New Orleans, which was a mostly black city of nearly half a million people before Katrina reduced it to well under 200,000 inhabitants.
The 49-year-old mayor is up for re-election and faces nearly two dozen candidates, including Louisiana Lt. Gov. Mitch Landrieu and Audubon Institute chief executive Ron Forman.
The state is implementing an emergency election plan that includes polling stations set up in 10 Louisiana cities, a national advertising campaign to inform displaced voters, and an easing of voting rules to allow displaced residents to cast ballots.
But civil rights groups have come out harshly against the plan, alleging that it does not do enough to reach out to displaced black voters, and prominent leaders like the Rev. Jesse Jackson have seized on the issue.
The plan itself was crafted in part by Lemelle, who forced Secretary of State Al Ater to produce a viable election roadmap after suits charged voting rights were trashed by Katrina.
Election procedures in Louisiana and many other Southern states are subject to Justice Department approval because of their history of racial discrimination.
The mayoral election, and balloting for offices like tax assessor and city council, was slated for Feb. 4. That deadline was postponed because of obvious problems caused by Katrina, and the April 22 date was set during legal wrangling.
The latest hearing was called after the NAACP and other civil rights groups stated that hidden in the election plan was the equivalent of a poll tax — a voting fee that was banned after it was abused in the South to disenfranchise blacks.
They say that many first-time voters are likely displaced and would have to pay for transportation to vote in New Orleans. The travel expenses, their pleading reads, are the "modern equivalent of a poll tax and would result in outright vote denial."
Other complaints include inadequate voting options for thousands of displaced New Orleans residents, cumbersome absentee ballot procedures, frequent movement of precinct locations and a refusal to share information about how candidates can reach the displaced voters.
Several black leaders argued Friday for satellite voting locations outside Louisiana. "We are seeing people from Iraq being treated better than people from New Orleans," the Rev. Al Sharpton said.
"This is a Florida in the making," said Urban League President Marc Morial, a former New Orleans mayor, referring to Florida's extensive voting problems in the 2000 elections. "If you see an election train wreck coming, why not do something to prevent it before the wreck occurs?"
A spokeswoman for Ater, the state's top election official, said out-of-state voting operations are not legal under Louisiana law.
Less than 10,000 registered voters have requested absentee ballots, said Dale Atkins, who is campaigning for re-election as civil district court clerk in New Orleans. About 43,000 registered voters have told Louisiana officials they are living out of state.
The groups upset about the election are calling for an April 1 march in New Orleans to protest elections they claim could sharply erode one of the most important federal civil rights laws.
(© 2006 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
