If the Supreme Court guts the Voting Rights Act, we’ll all pay the price
The Supreme Court’s arguments in Louisiana v. Callais left little doubt about what’s coming: The Voting Rights Act may soon be gutted beyond recognition. To anyone reading the headlines, this may look like a small fight over one state’s congressional map. In truth, it is a test of whether the U.S. still believes in protecting every citizen’s right to fair representation.
Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act is the last protection against racial discrimination in redistricting. It guarantees non-white voters a fair shot at electing people who actually represent them. If the court limits it, states could redraw maps that silence those voters.
The justices’ questions made the threat to the Voting Rights Act clear.
Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who sided with the majority just two years ago in Allen v. Milligan, asked whether race-based remedies should have an “end point.” Chief Justice John Roberts wondered if Milligan even applied to Louisiana. That suggests a willingness on his end to change legal precedent that he once called “settled.” Justice Amy Coney Barrett implied that Section 2 was a possible “racial classification.”
The court’s liberal justices pushed back. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson noted that Section 2 was designed to address ongoing discrimination, including racially polarized voting and segregation, and argued that acknowledging race in that context is part of enforcing the Constitution, not violating it. Justice Sonia Sotomayor warned that the conservative proposals would “just get rid of” the law altogether.
From these exchanges, it is clear the court’s conservative majority thinks the fight against discrimination is over. Calling America “colorblind” doesn’t make inequality disappear, but it makes it easier to ignore.
And outside the court, the same story is playing out. Just this month, the Trump administration proposed refugee rules that would favor white Europeans and South Africans. A House Republican called the police after discovering someone had placed a swastika flag in his office. And leaked messages from political staffers revealed thousands of racist, sexist, homophobic and antisemitic slurs.
This is not a coincidence — it’s a coordinated move toward a less representative and less inclusive country.
If Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act is gutted, states will have freedom to draw maps that dilute the power of communities of color. The consequences will be drastic. Analysts warn that the Congressional Black Caucus could lose one-third of its seats, and the Hispanic Caucus about 10 percent.
Louisiana v. Callais is about more than a map. It will show whether the nation’s highest court still believes a fair and multiracial democracy is worth defending.
Voting is not a privilege to be restricted or manipulated. It is a fundamental civil right. Protecting it is not optional. It is the only way to ensure that America’s future remains of, by and for the people.
Tom Lopach is the president and CEO of the nonpartisan, nonprofit Voter Participation Center and the Center for Voter Information.
