Dear Senator,

The League of Conservation Voters (LCV) works to turn environmental values into national, state and local priorities. Each year, LCV publishes the National Environmental Scorecard, which details the voting records of members of Congress on environmental legislation. The Scorecard is distributed to LCV members, concerned voters nationwide, and the media.

We urge you to oppose the judicial nomination of Thomas Farr to the United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina. LCV is committed to racial justice and equity, and Farr’s career as an attorney in North Carolina has a disturbing association with attacks on voting rights, especially those of people of color. Farr represented Senator Jesse Helms’ campaign when it was accused of attempting to intimidate black voters. Further, serious questions have been raised as to whether Farr misrepresented his involvement in this effort at his confirmation hearing.

Farr has also represented the Republican-led North Carolina legislature in efforts to dilute African American political power and make it harder for communities of color to vote. He recently unsuccessfully represented the North Carolina Legislature in Cooper v. Harris, in which the Supreme Court concluded they had engaged in an unconstitutional racial gerrymander when redrawing two districts. Further, he failed in his attempt to defend North Carolina’s restrictive and discriminatory voter identification law in North Carolina v. N.C. State Conf. of NAACP. The Fourth Circuit said the law targeted African American voters “with almost surgical precision.”

For these reasons, LCV strongly urges you to oppose the judicial nomination of Thomas Farr to the United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina. We will consider including this confirmation vote in the 2018 Scorecard. If you need more information, please call my office at (202) 785-8683 and ask to speak with a member of our government relations team.

Sincerely,

Gene Karpinski
President