supreme court latest decisions voting rights

Supreme court latest decisions voting rights registration#

They then were required to submit any proposed voting changes in advance, either to the U.S.

Supreme court latest decisions voting rights registration#

It was such Jim Crow-era rules that the Voting Rights Act was designed to stop, relying on a formula to identify states, counties and towns with a history of imposing voting restrictions and with low voter registration or participation rates. Supporters argued the change was needed to boost security, though ultimately the bill failed to pass as the state’s legislature adjourned Tuesday without taking a final vote on it.Ĭritics said the proposal would have made it difficult for voters who are older, low-income, ill or who do not feel comfortable with the already cumbersome absentee ballot process, which includes a requirement to submit a copy of a photo ID.īetty Shinn, a 72-year-old Black woman from Mobile testified against the bill, saying it was a vehicle for suppressing votes: “It’s no different from asking me how many jellybeans are in that jar or asking me to recite the Constitution from memory.” The recent wave of voting changes have been pushed by Republican lawmakers who point to concerns over elections that have been fueled by former President Donald Trump’s false claims that the 2020 election was stolen.Īt least 104 restrictive voting laws have been passed in 33 mostly GOP-controlled legislatures since the 2020 election, according to data analyzed by the Voting Rights Lab, which tracks voting bills in the states.Īlabama, where two of the major challenges to the Voting Rights Act began, considered legislation this year that would have made it a crime to help a non-family member fill out or return an absentee ballot. “At that point, you have to ask yourself what’s left of the Voting Rights Act?” said Franita Tolson, a constitutional and election law expert and co-dean of the University of Southern California School of Law.

And justices are expected to rule in the coming weeks in still another case out of Alabama that could make it much more difficult for minority groups to sue over gerrymandered political maps that dilute their representation. The Supreme Court weakened another section of the Voting Rights Act two years ago with a ruling in a case from Arizona.

At the same time, the conservative-leaning court has continued to take other cases challenging elements of the landmark 1965 law. The ruling a decade ago continues to reverberate across the country, as Republican-led states pass voting restrictions that, in several cases, would have been subject to federal review had the court left the provision intact. Lawmakers in Alabama said they would press forward with a similar law that had been on hold.

Supreme Court decision dismantling a key provision of the Voting Rights Act, Texas lawmakers announced plans to implement a strict voter ID law that had been blocked by a federal court. Black Financial Health Open dropdown menuĪTLANTA (AP) - Within hours of a U.S.GOP senators Gerald Hocker and Brian Pettyjohn, both of Sussex County, reiterated that Republicans “correctly argued during the flood debates” that both measures violated the constitution. Lawmakers responded swiftly, with Senate Republican leaders who opposed the laws praising the decision, and Democrats who control both the House and Senate and pushed the measures expressing disappointment. The deadline to register to vote will be the fourth Saturday before the election, which is Oct. In addition to the mail-in vote decision, the high court also negated a new law that allows people to register and vote on Election Day. Business or occupation for themselves, or when accompanying a spouse or dependent to work.Vice Chancellor Nathan Cook had ruled last month that state courts have consistently stated that absentee balloting is only permissible as spelled out in the state constitution when a voter can’t get to their polling location for these reasons: 13 primary election, when about one-fifth of the approximately 50,000 votes were sent by mail. The ruling did not affect the mail-in ballots used in the Sept. WHYY thanks our sponsors - become a WHYY sponsor