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                      Tuesday 2 april 2024


















            States move to shore up voting rights protections after courts

            erode federal safeguards



            By STEVE KARNOWSKI           Democratic-led       states  false claims that vote fraud
            Associated Press             have  been  taking  matters  cost him the 2020 election.
            ST.  PAUL,  Minn.  (AP)  —  An  into  their  own  hands  be-  Legislators  in  Minnesota,
            appeals  court  ruling  that  cause  national  legislation  Michigan,  Maryland,  New
            weakened a key part of the  to  expand  voting  rights  Jersey and Florida are pur-
            Voting Rights Act is spurring  remains  stalled  in  a  divid-  suing  state  voting  rights
            lawmakers in several states  ed  Congress.  Meanwhile,  acts,  building  on  ones  en-
            to enact state-level protec-  Republican  lawmakers  in  acted by New York in 2022
            tions to plug gaps that the  many  states  have  tried  to  and  Connecticut  in  2023,
            ruling  opened  in  the  land-  erode  safeguards  in  the  as  well  as  ones  enacted
            mark federal law aimed at  name  of  protecting  elec-    earlier  in  Virginia,  Oregon,
            prohibiting  racial  discrimi-  tion  integrity  amid  former  Washington and California.
            nation in voting.            President  Donald  Trump's  "And  we  know  of  interest


                                                                                                   Minnesota  Senate  President  Bobby  Joe  Champion  sits  at  his
                                                                                                   desk in his office in the State Capitol complex, March 11, 2024,
                                                                                                   in St. Paul, Minn.
                                                                                                                                           Associated Press
                                                                                                   from  other  states  that  are  icy,  what  you're  seeing  is,
                                                                                                   considering taking up state  states  really  have  to  say,
                                                                                                   VRAs in the next year or so,"  'We  need  to  make  sure
                                                                                                   said Michael Pernick, an at-  that  ...  we  have  a  system
                                                                                                   torney for the NAACP Legal  that is free from discrimina-
                                                                                                   Defense Fund in New York.    tion,  we  need  to  protect
                                                                                                   In  Minnesota,  Democratic  the rights of voters,'" Green-
                                                                                                   Rep. Emma Greenman, of  man said.
                                                                                                   Minneapolis,  said  she  felt  The  1965  Voting  Rights
                                                                                                   an urgent need to act af-    Act  is  seen  as  a  crowning
                                                                                                   ter the 8th U.S. Circuit Court  achievement  of  the  civil
                                                                                                   of Appeals ruled last year in  rights  movement.  But  fed-
                                                                                                   an Arkansas case that vot-   eral  courts  have  "chipped
                                                                                                   ers  and  groups  could  no  away"  at  it  over  the  de-
                                                                                                   longer sue under Section 2  cades,  said  Lata  Nott,  an
                                                                                                   of the federal Voting Rights  attorney  with  the  Cam-
                                                                                                   Act  —  only  the  U.S.  attor-  paign  Legal  Center  in
                                                                                                   ney general.                 Washington, D.C., who tes-
                                                                                                   Section  2  prohibits  voting  tified for the Minnesota bill.
                                                                                                   practices  or  procedures  The biggest blow to the fed-
                                                                                                   that  discriminate  on  the  eral law in the view of vot-
                                                                                                   basis  of  race,  including  ing rights advocates was a
                                                                                                   maps  that  disadvantage  2013  Supreme  Court  ruling
                                                                                                   voters  of  color.  Lawsuits  in  an  Alabama  case  that
                                                                                                   have  long  been  brought  stripped  the  government
                                                                                                   under the section to try to  of a potent tool to stop vot-
                                                                                                   ensure  Black  voters  have  ing bias by eliminating the
                                                                                                   adequate  political  repre-  requirement  that  jurisdic-
                                                                                                   sentation  in  places  with  tions with a history of racial
                                                                                                   a  long  history  of  racism,  discrimination in voting get
                                                                                                   including  many  Southern  "preclearance"  from  the
                                                                                                   states.                      federal  government  for
                                                                                                   The  appeals  court  deci-   major changes in the way
                                                                                                   sion  currently  applies  only  they hold elections.
                                                                                                   to  the  seven  states  in  the  Conservatives  have  ar-
                                                                                                   8th Circuit, which stretches  gued   the   requirement
                                                                                                   from  Minnesota  to  Arkan-  did  not  account  for  racial
                                                                                                   sas. Legal observers expect  progress and other chang-
                                                                                                   the case to end up before  es in society and that exist-
                                                                                                   the U.S. Supreme Court.      ing voting rights protections
                                                                                                   "As with other areas of pol-  are adequate.q
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