UN Committee on Racial Discrimination in US Issues Recommendations on Voting Rights

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Right to vote
11. The Committee is concerned at the obstacles faced by individuals belonging to racial and ethnic minorities and indigenous peoples to effectively exercise their right to vote, due inter alia to restrictive voter identification laws, district gerrymandering, and state-level felon disenfranchisement laws. It is also concerned at the Supreme Court decision in Shelby County v. Holder, which struck down Section 4(b) of the Voting Rights Act and made Section 5 inoperable, thus invalidating the procedural safeguards to prevent the implementation of voting regulations that may have discriminatory effect. It expresses further concern at the continued denial of the right of residents of the District of Colombia (D.C.), half of whom are African Americans, to vote for and elect representatives to the United States Senate and voting-members to the House of Representatives (arts. 2 and 5(c)).
The Committee recommends that the State party take effective measures to:
(a) Enforce federal voting rights law throughout the State party in ways that encourage voter participation, and adopt federal legislation to prevent the
implementation of voting regulations which have discriminatory impact in light of the
Shelby County v. Holder decision;
(b) Ensure that indigenous peoples can effectively exercise their right to vote and address their specific concerns;
(c) Ensure that all states reinstate voting rights to persons convicted of felony who have completed their sentences, provide inmates with information about
their voting restoration options, and review automatic denial of the right to vote to
imprisoned felons regardless of the nature of the offence; and
(d) Provide for the full voting rights of residents of Washington, D.C.

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