“The Supreme Court and Young Voter Turnout”

March 22, 2024, 5:15 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

NYT: Georgia, with its long history of the suppression of Black voters, has been ground zero for fights about voting rights laws for decades. The state has often seen stark differences in turnout between white and nonwhite communities, with the… Continue reading

Alex Keyssar on “A Real Right to Vote”: “That Little Omission in the Constitution”

March 10, 2024, 3:41 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

Alex Keyssar, as part of the Balkinization symposium on my new book, A Real Right to Vote: It is with this backdrop in mind, as well as my own historical writing and twenty years of witnessing increasingly strident struggles… Continue reading

“Racial Turnout Gap Has Widened With a Weakened Voting Rights Act, Study Finds”

March 2, 2024, 3:27 pmVoting Rights ActRick Hasen

NYT: When the Supreme Court knocked down a core part of the Voting Rights Act in 2013, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. argued that some of the law’s protections against racial discrimination were no longer necessary. He wrote that… Continue reading

My New One in The Atlantic: “How to Actually Guarantee the Right to Vote: A Six-Point Checklist”

February 13, 2024, 7:39 amReal Right to VoteRick Hasen

I have written this piece for the Atlantic, which is adapted from my book out next week, A Real Right to Vote. It begins: As election season begins and Americans head to the polls, many would be shocked to learn… Continue reading

Richard Bernstein: “A Response to Professor Lederman on the Electors Clause Issue in the Trump Disqualification Case”

February 5, 2024, 10:31 amSupreme CourtRick Hasen

The following is a guest post from Richard Bernstein: The formidable Prof. Marty Lederman recently has argued that the Electors Clause does not apply to presidential primaries because primaries elect delegates rather than electors. This particular argument, however, is wrong.… Continue reading

E.J. Dionne WaPo Column Discusses the Threats to Voting Rights, and the Need for a Constitutional Amendment Protecting the Right to Vote (Citing My Upcoming Book, “A Real Right to Vote”)

November 26, 2023, 9:37 amReal Right to Vote, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

E.J. Dionne WaPo column: In his decision in Shelby, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. claimed that even without a strong Section 4, the Voting Rights Act bans discrimination under Section 2, which “is permanent, applies nationwide, and is not… Continue reading

Travis Crum: “Stopping Alabama’s Defiance of the Voting Rights Act”

October 10, 2023, 2:27 pmredistricting, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

The following is a guest post from Travis Crum: Alabama is once again the frontline of the fight for voting rights. After two years of litigation, Alabama now has two Black-opportunity congressional districts. But unfortunately, there are shockingly few… Continue reading

“Proposed Legislation Would Restore Voting for Released Felons”

August 15, 2023, 5:22 pmUncategorizedfelon disenfranchisement, Shelby CountyNed Foley

Governing reports. “The Democracy Restoration Act would restore voting rights for released felons in federal elections only. In states where eligibility doesn’t kick in during probation or parole, the voter would only be able to fill out a federal ballot,… Continue reading

Brandon Johnson: “Election Aggrandizement”

August 2, 2023, 3:31 pmlegislation and legislatures, Supreme Court, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

The following is a guest post from Brandon Johnson, who begins as an Assistant Professor at the University of Nebraska on August 14: The Supreme Court received praise for two election law decisions issued in the waning weeks of its… Continue reading

“Michigan clerk stripped of election duties after being charged for acting as fake elector in 2020”

July 20, 2023, 3:42 pmelection administration, election subversion riskDan Tokaji

AP: On Thursday, the Michigan Bureau of Elections notified Stan Grot, a Republican who has served as the Shelby Township clerk since 2012, that he will be prohibited from administering elections while the charges are pending. Grot was among… Continue reading

Edsall on the New Vote Denial

July 13, 2023, 5:46 amThe Voting Wars, Voting Rights ActDan Tokaji

From the great Thomas Edsall in the NYT. His weekly columns are always worth reading, because he understands the grave challenges that American democracy faces and does a great job of explaining complex social science research to a lay audience.… Continue reading

The VRA and the Affirmative Action Cases

July 7, 2023, 12:35 pmUncategorizedRichard Pildes

I do not think the affirmative action cases, or Shelby County, directly cast doubt on the constitutionality of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. Louisiana has now raised this question in its letter filing with the Fifth Circuit in… Continue reading

Louisiana Argues that the District Court Considering Voting Rights Challenge to Louisiana Congressional Redistricting Should Consider if Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act is No Longer Constitutional

July 7, 2023, 10:04 amVoting Rights ActRick Hasen

Yup, there it is (via Hansi Lo Wang): [The Supreme Court’s affirmative action decision in] SFFA has considerably altered the landscape of cases, such as this one, that involve state action requiring racial classifications. 2023 WL 4239254,… Continue reading

Roberts’ Majority Opinion Preserving the Status Quo in Alabama Voting Rights Act Case Must Be Seen in Light of His Killing of Affirmative Action in Education in Today’s Students for Fair Admissions Case

June 29, 2023, 7:28 amSupreme Court, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

A few weeks ago, after the Supreme Court preserved the (weak) status quo for Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act in Allen v. Milligan, I wrote in the NY Times: The big mystery is why Chief Justice… Continue reading