As a former staff writer, Caroline tracked voting rights legislation, wrote the weekly newsletter and covered the intersection between voting and the criminal legal system. Originally from Cape Cod, Massachusetts, Caroline graduated from New York University Abu Dhabi in 2021. She advocates for jail-based voting and rights restoration in her home state.
On Friday, June 30, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to weigh in a lawsuit challenging Mississippi’s 1890 felony disenfranchisement provision.
Two weeks ago today, in Allen v. Milligan, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Alabama’s congressional map for violating the Voting Rights Act. Within hours and days, previously stalled cases across the country started moving again.
The U.S. Supreme Court will hear a South Carolina racial gerrymandering case next term. Trial testimony reveals intentional weakening of Black voting strength, an opaque redistricting process and a culture of unresponsiveness.
On Wednesday, June 14, the U.S. Senate confirmed voting rights lawyer Dale Ho to a lifetime appointment as a judge on the District Court of the Southern District of New York.
The bills passed by the Arizona Legislature reflect the GOP’s descent into election conspiracy theories and attempts to make voting more difficult. Gov. Katie Hobbs (D) has become a key player in blocking anti-democratic efforts.
The majority upheld Section 2 of the Voting Rights and its current application, a victory for voting rights and for Black Alabamians who will have the opportunity to elect the candidates of their choice.
Minnesota, New Mexico and Washington have led on improving voting access so far this year. Some state legislatures are still meeting, so more pro-voting reforms are likely on the horizon.
A right-wing legal group founded by former Republican officials, Restoring Integrity and Trust in Elections (RITE), consistently argues against voters and voting access under the guise of “integrity” and “security.”
The fact that a small city’s redistricting skirmish led to the gutting of a central portion of the federal Voting Rights Act should serve as a reminder to not overlook local redistricting.
Some states still condition voting rights on wealth. In Florida, North Carolina and elsewhere, these modern day poll taxes exemplify how laws protecting the right to vote too often fail to apply to people with past felony convictions.
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