Category Archives: Voting Rights Act

Shelby County and turnout stats

June 27, 2013, 4:55 pmvoting, Voting Rights ActJustin Levitt

Soon-to-be Indiana U. political scientist Bernard Fraga discusses comparative racial and ethnic turnout, finding that midterm elections and county-level data tell a different story than statewide numbers in presidential years. To give the overall conclusions context, it helps to… Continue reading

Supreme Court vacates pending Texas preclearance appeals

June 27, 2013, 4:43 pmredistricting, voter id, Voting Rights ActJustin Levitt

The appeals on both photo ID and redistricting were vacated in the wake of Shelby County. The photo ID law is now legally operative (though challenged in new litigation filed yesterday). The redistricting maps were superseded yesterday when Governor… Continue reading

“The 2013 Running Of The Interns”

June 27, 2013, 4:42 pmelection law "humor", Supreme Court, Voting Rights ActJustin Levitt

And still another intriguing angle on the consequences of Shelby County. Perhaps it’s just me (certainly, it’s just me), but after repeatedly seeing major news sites depict the release of each opinion this week with a different picture of an… Continue reading

“N.M. was affected by Voting Rights Act”

June 27, 2013, 4:41 pmVoting Rights ActJustin Levitt

One of the few articles I’ve seen recently discussing the section 3 “bail-in” mechanism. This piece discusses New Mexico’s experience with preclearance.

“Don’t forget the Census Bureau’s prison miscount when fixing Section 4 of the Voting Rights Act”

June 27, 2013, 4:41 pmredistricting, Voting Rights ActJustin Levitt

Some intriguing maps at Prisoners of the Census, comparing jurisdictions with less than 50% turnout in 2012 to jurisdictions with incarcerated populations.

“Reading Congressional Tea Leaves from the 2006 Renewal of the Voting Rights Act”

June 27, 2013, 4:40 pmlegislation and legislatures, Voting Rights ActJustin Levitt

Sarah Binder digs into the voting patterns on the 2006 VRA renewal process to forecast Congressional action going forward. And The Post’s The Fix discusses the difficult political road for Obama.

Rep. Sensenbrenner On VRA: “Threat Of Discrimination Still Exists”

June 27, 2013, 4:40 pmVoting Rights ActJustin Levitt

TPM has the quote: “. . . Section 5 of the Act was a bipartisan effort to rectify past injustices and ensure minorities’ ability to participate in elections, but the threat of discrimination still exists. I am disappointed by… Continue reading

Shelby County v. DOMA, Part II

June 27, 2013, 4:40 pmSupreme Court, Voting Rights ActJustin Levitt

The money quote of this piece: ” Framing an issue—any issue—in terms of states’ rights obscures the fact that a bedrock purpose of any decent political system is to protect the rights of individuals, and to soften the sharp… Continue reading

“Conservative Constitutional Hypocrisy”

June 27, 2013, 4:39 pmSupreme Court, Voting Rights ActJustin Levitt

Eric Schnurer’s piece on originalism and Shelby County begins: Most reaction to this week’s Supreme Court ruling on the Voting Rights Act will center on whether the court was right that the law (or at least its Section 5)… Continue reading

Even more reactions to Shelby County

June 27, 2013, 4:39 pmVoting Rights ActJustin Levitt

Sherrilyn Ifill George Will SEIU Arizona Republic Jewish Daily Forward

Al Jazeera’s take on the last three days of the term

June 27, 2013, 10:22 amSupreme Court, Voting Rights ActJustin Levitt

The program includes Shelby County. Guests include Spencer Overton and Doug Spencer.

“How to protect minority votes after the Voting Rights decision”

June 27, 2013, 10:22 amalternative voting systems, redistricting, Voting Rights ActJustin Levitt

Krist Novoselic connects the world beyond Shelby County to the world beyond single-member plurality districts.

Reactions to Shelby County: Abby Thernstrom

June 27, 2013, 9:13 amVoting Rights ActJustin Levitt

Abby’s op-ed appears to be behind the WSJ paywall, but it begins… The Supreme Court did itself proud on Tuesday when it struck down Section 4 of the Voting Rights Act. That is the provision of the law containing the … Continue reading

Reactions to Shelby County: Linda Greenhouse

June 26, 2013, 9:05 pmVoting Rights ActJustin Levitt

I’d been waiting for this. It begins: “While any racial discrimination in voting is too much,” Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. told us in Tuesday’s decision gutting the Voting Rights Act, “Congress must ensure that the legislation it… Continue reading