Category Archives: Voting Rights Act

“The New Voter Suppression”

January 23, 2020, 2:36 pmThe Voting Wars, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

New Brennan Center report: On Election Day in 1960, four unanswerable questions awaited Clarence Gaskins, a Black voter in Georgia looking to cast his ballot for president. Upon arrival at his designated polling place, he was ushered into a room… Continue reading

“NAACP Suit Says Rigged Voting System Favors Orthodox Jews in East Ramapo”

January 20, 2020, 1:52 pmVoting Rights ActRick Hasen

New York Jewish Week reports.

For MLK Day

January 20, 2020, 8:23 amVoting Rights ActRick Hasen

Here’s a piece I wrote for an MLK50 event at Memphis Law: Civil Right No. 1: Dr. King’s Unfinished Voting Rights Revolution.

Divided Fifth Circuit Rejects Argument of Dallas, Texas White Voters of Voting Rights Violation and Racial Gerrymandering; Judge Ho Partly Dissents, Seeking to Read Voting Rights Act More Strictly

January 17, 2020, 1:01 pmVoting Rights ActRick Hasen

You can find the opinions in Harding v. County of Dallas at this link. Judge Ho’s partial dissent is significant in that it reads the Supreme Court’s 2018 opinion in Perez v. Abbott to add new requirements for plaintiffs… Continue reading

“Voting rights, representation and the future of democracy in the nation’s fruit basket”

January 7, 2020, 3:03 pmVoting Rights ActJustin Levitt

Nikkita Oliver on the aftermath of the VRA case in Yakima, Washington. And a similar story, also today, from Pasco, 90 miles down the road.

“Chief Justice Roberts warns we’re taking “democracy for granted.” His rulings haven’t helped.”

January 3, 2020, 4:34 pmcampaign finance, Voting Rights ActJustin Levitt

Ian Millhiser critiques what he sees as a disconnect between the Chief’s year-end report on the judiciary and our democracy, and the Chief’s actions on the judiciary and our democracy.

“John Lewis and the need to preserve history”

December 31, 2019, 2:10 pmVoting Rights ActJustin Levitt

Brandon Tensley offers thoughts on the occasion of Rep. John Lewis’s announcement of his fight against pancreatic cancer – the most recent courageous fight of an iconic career. (We know that animal Twitter is heartwarming, sure. But if you’re… Continue reading

Must-Read: “Precinct closures harm voter turnout in Georgia, AJC analysis finds”

December 13, 2019, 7:11 pmelection administration, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

AJC: Amid widespread voter distrust of government oversight of elections and questions about ballot access, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution conducted a unique statistical analysis to learn how precinct closures and distance to the polls impact voting.The AJC mapped Georgia’s 7 million… Continue reading

“Politics as Pretext”

December 9, 2019, 9:15 amVoting Rights ActRick Hasen

Joshua Sellers has posted this draft on SSRN (Howard Law Journal). Here is the abstract: One of the more convoluted dilemmas in election law involves distinguishing government actions motivated by race from those motivated by partisanship. In this Essay, prepared… Continue reading

“House Passes Voting Rights Bill Despite Near Unanimous Republican Opposition”

December 8, 2019, 8:40 pmVoting Rights Act, VRAARick Hasen

NYT: The House voted on Friday to reinstate federal oversight of state election law, moving to bolster protections against racial discrimination enshrined in the 1965 Voting Rights Act, the landmark civil rights statute whose central provision was struck down by… Continue reading

“House Votes to Restore the Voting Rights Act”

December 6, 2019, 10:03 amVoting Rights Act, VRAARick Hasen

Ari Berman: The House Judiciary Committee and the House Administration Committee held extensive hearings, including in states like Georgia and Texas, to document the need for a renewed Voting Rights Act. The bill passed the House on a largely … Continue reading

“Civil rights activists seek block on state’s voter ID law. Judge in Winston-Salem says she will decide quickly.”

December 4, 2019, 11:26 amvoter id, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

Winston-Salem Journal: For the second time in four years, a version of North Carolina’s election law was in federal court, this time based on allegations that if enacted, black and Latino voters would be disenfranchised.Attorneys for the North Carolina NAACP… Continue reading

Ninth Circuit Panel, in Unpublished Opinion, Unanimously (and Briefly) Rejects Constitutional Challenge to California Voting Rights Act

December 4, 2019, 10:26 amVoting Rights ActRick Hasen

You can find the four page opinion here. This is a big deal. This is a major case brought by Ed Blum (who has brought us Shelby County, the Fisher affirmative action case, and others) and litigated by William… Continue reading

Native American Voting Rights Group Settles with Arizona Over Ballot Litigation

November 30, 2019, 3:57 pmVoting Rights ActRick Hasen

Turtle Talk: Here are the materials in Navajo Nation, et al. v. Reagan, et al. No. CV-18-08329-PCT-DWL (Ariz. D. Ct. 2019).The Amended Complaint sought:[D]eclaratory and injunctive relief, compelling the Defendants to (a) allow early voters who do not sign their… Continue reading