AALDEF Files Voting Rights Act Lawsuit Against NYC Board of Elections, CitesViolations of VRA Language Assistance Provisions

7 February 2006

In federal court today, the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF), along with pro bono co-counsel Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP, filed a lawsuit against the New York City Board of Elections for violations of the Language Assistance Provisions of the federal Voting Rights Act.

The suit was filed on behalf of four organizations-the Chinatown Voter Education Alliance, Young Korean American Service and Education Center, Inc. (YKASEC), Korean American Voters' Council, and Chinese American Voters Association-and five limited English proficient Asian American voters.

Said AALDEF Executive Director Margaret Fung, "The New York City Board of Elections must stop ignoring its obligations to provide effective language assistance to Asian American voters who are not fully proficient in English. For over a decade, the Board's erratic attempts at compliance with the Voting Rights Act have disenfranchised too many Asian American voters."

The complaint alleges that Asian Americans in New York City encountered a range of discriminatory obstacles in exercising their right to vote-as did other minority voters in Florida in 2000 and Ohio in 2004-including faulty transliterations of candidates' names, interpreter shortages, and poor poll worker training. AALDEF collected hundreds of such incidents annually during every Primary and General election in 1998, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, and other years, which were reported to the Board of Elections through letters, meetings, public hearings, and telephone complaints.

"Instead of comprehensive compliance and reforms under the Voting Rights Act, the Board of Elections has responded with isolated band-aid fixes. Forty years after the historic passage of the Voting Rights Act, minority voters are still fighting for the right to vote," said AALDEF Staff Attorney Glenn Magpantay.

Specifically, AALDEF and Weil Gotshal filed the suit to enforce Sections 203 and 208 of the Voting Rights Act. Section 203 requires the translation of almost all election-related materials, voter notices and publicity, and assistance at poll sites. Section 203 covers Chinese in New York, Kings, and Queens counties and Korean in Queens. Section 208 allows voters to receive assistance by persons of their choice who may also enter the voting booth with voters to translate.

The complaint also alleges that federal observers sent by the U.S. Department of Justice since 1991, under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, will corroborate many of the Section 203 and 208 violations AALDEF documented.

According to AALDEF's 2004 exit poll survey of 7,247 Asian American voters in New York City, 46 percent of Asian Americans expressed that they were limited English proficient. Among Chinese American voters, 56 percent were limited English proficient and 37 percent needed language assistance to vote. Among Korean American voters, 65 percent were limited English proficient and 42 percent needed language assistance to vote.

For a partial list of discriminatory incidents documented by AALDEF, visit: http://www.aaldef.org/news.html#boelawsuit.

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Source: usnewswire

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