Federal courts ruled decisions affecting the voter identification laws ahead of November's midterm election.

In Texas, a district court judge ruled the Lone Star State's voter ID law was racially discriminatory and violated the Voting Rights Act. U.S. District Judge Nelva Gonzales Ramos of Corpus Christi, Texas, stated the voter ID law would "create an unconstitutional burden on the right to vote, has an impermissible discriminatory effect against Hispanics and African-Americans, and was imposed with an unconstitutional discriminatory purpose."

Despite the judge's decision, Texas Attorney General, and Republican gubernatorial candidate, Greg Abbott plans to appeal the decision "immediately."

"The State of Texas will immediately appeal and will urge the Fifth Circuit to resolve this matter quickly to avoid voter confusion in the upcoming election," said Texas Attorney General's Deputy Communications Director Lauren Bean. "The U.S. Supreme Court has already ruled that voter ID laws are constitutional, so we are confident the Texas law will be upheld on appeal."

"This is great news for democracy," Texas Democratic gubernatorial candidate Wendy Davis said. "I call on Attorney General Greg Abbott to drop his defense of a law that a court has now called a 'poll tax' and 'discriminatory' against African-Americans and Hispanics."

The Texas voter ID law was passed by the state's Republicans in 2011.

In Wisconsin, the U.S. Supreme Court vacated the state's voter ID law on Thursday. The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals gave the Wisconsin voter ID law the pass for implementation in September. Supporters of the state's voter ID law are allowed 90 days to file a petition for the Supreme Court to discuss the issue.

National organizations such as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) voiced opposition to the state's voter ID law and commended the courts' decisions.

"The history of voter discrimination in Texas is well documented. Literacy tests, poll taxes, redrawing of electoral lines and other mechanisms have been used to intimidate minorities from voting," LULAC's Executive Director Brent Wilkes said.

"These efforts are un-American in that they are an assault on the democratic principles upon which this country was founded. The Court's decision to strike down this latest attempt at voter manipulation is a reaffirmation that the core democratic principle of the right to vote applies to all Americans, including the disadvantaged. LULAC has fought to ensure such rights for all individuals and is deeply gratified by the Court's decision."

"[The Supreme Court's] order puts the brakes on the last-minute disruption and voter chaos created by this law going into effect so close to the election," said ACLU's Voting Rights Project Director Dale Ho. "It will help safeguard the vote for thousands of Wisconsinites as this case makes its way through the courts."

In regards to the Texas decision, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said in a statement, "We are extremely heartened by the court's decision, which affirms our position that the Texas voter identification law unfairly and unnecessarily restricts access to the franchise. Even after the Voting Rights Act was seriously eroded last year, we vowed to continue enforcing the remaining portions of that statute as aggressively as possible. This ruling is an important vindication of those efforts."

Holder also commented on the Wisconsin decision, stating, "We are also pleased that the Supreme Court has refused to allow Wisconsin to implement its own restrictive voter identification law. This Department will never yield in its commitment to protecting that most sacred of Americans' rights -- the right to vote."