Midterms Highlight Supreme Court’s Threat to Black Votes
Later this term, the justices are expected to gut the 1965 Voting Rights Act, a ruling that would have a profound effect on Black Americans — and House Democrats.
Activists will have to fight for every district.
Photographer: Brandon Bell/Getty ImagesAt a time when control of the House of Representatives has come down to just a few seats, it’s a good time to reexamine the Voting Rights Act case pending before the Supreme Court. How the justices rule will have meaningful consequences for future House elections — especially close ones like this year’s. And most importantly, the court’s decision could reverse decades of progress on racial representation.
The case, Merrill v. Milligan, comes out of Alabama — precisely the kind of Deep South state that Congress had in mind when it passed the VRA in 1965. Under Section 2 of the law, a state can’t draw districts to intentionally dilute the power of Black votes and thus deny racial minorities an equal opportunity to elect candidates of their choice.