"“The country's most important civil rights law no longer effectively exists, and that's going to have ramifications on American democracy for a very long time.” Mother Jones correspondent Ari Berman reacts to the Supreme Court's recent 6-3 decision rejecting key principles of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. Since the court issued its ruling last week, Republican-controlled states have begun to redraw their voting maps in a “gerrymandering arms race” that “could lead to the largest drop in Black representation since the Jim Crow era,” explains Berman."
"“We're returning to the days of literacy tests and poll taxes - not through those devices, but through specifically trying to eliminate Black office holders. And Southern legislators are very clear they are going to do this. They feel unshackled by the Supreme Court ruling. They are being pressured by President Trump to do it, and they feel like all the guardrails are off right now.”"
"The Supreme Court's gutting of the Voting Rights Act has led to a scramble by Southern states to gerrymander congressional districts before the November midterms. Last week's Supreme Court ruling makes it harder for minorities to challenge electoral maps as racially discriminatory under the Voting Rights Act. On Monday, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a new gerrymandered congressional district map into law, posting on the social media platform X, quote, “signed, sealed and delivered.”"
The Supreme Court issued a 6-3 decision rejecting key principles of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. The ruling weakens protections against racially discriminatory electoral maps and makes challenges harder for minorities. After the decision, Republican-controlled states began redrawing voting maps in a gerrymandering arms race ahead of the November midterms. Florida’s governor signed a new gerrymandered congressional district map. Alabama’s legislature approved a plan to change congressional district boundaries during an active process. The changes are described as a return to tactics aimed at eliminating Black officeholders, with Southern legislators acting as if guardrails no longer apply.
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