Voting Rights Act (VRA)
“On Wednesday, in the heat of another pitched American battle over voting rights, one that is playing out in courthouses and state capitals all across the nation, the Senate Judiciary Committee met yet again to remind us of how tenuous the right to vote still is in this country. ... The hearing was called "The Citizens United Court and the Continuing Importance of the Voting Rights Act" and, as the title suggests, it was an attempt by the Democratic leadership on the Committee to connect together on Capitol Hill two legal trends of recent vintage, each beginning in 2010.”
Testifying today before the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the continuing importance of the Voting Rights Act, Elisabeth MacNamara, president of the League of Women Voters of the United Stat
“The Justice Department has cleared New Hampshire's voter ID law under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act. Unlike voter ID laws DOJ has challenged, voters who lack an acceptable form of photo identification will be allowed to cast a ballot if they sign an affidavit confirming their identity.”
“How South Carolina election officials accommodate voters unable to get required photo identification before going to the polls is playing a key role in the legal fight over whether the state’s strict voter ID law discriminates against minorities. ... Closing arguments are scheduled for Sept. 24, six weeks before the Nov. 6 election. ...the law, if approved by the panel, would go into effect immediately. If it’s struck down, the state could appeal the ruling to the Supreme Court.”
“Fortunately, federal courts are seeing these efforts for what they are: a variation on the racist laws that disenfranchised millions before those tactics were outlawed by the Voting Rights Act. … These federal courts were careful to respect state sovereignty. But they were also mindful that state laws that suppress minority votes cannot be allowed to stand.”
Court agrees with League of Women Voters and Department of Justice Voter Photo ID is discriminatory
“In a lengthy, sweeping decision, a federal court in Washington on Tuesday unanimously struck down Texas' new congressional map, ruling that the plan was enacted with "discriminatory purpose" against Hispanics protected under the Voting Rights Act. The ruling will not affect this year's elections, but barring successful appeal, Texas would have to redraw its maps before 2014.”
“A federal trial opening Monday will examine the legality of South Carolina’s new voter ID law and also put on display the state’s history of racial discrimination.”
Forty-seven years ago, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the historic Voting Rights Act (VRA) into law.