The Voting Rights Act has taken two devastating blows. What comes next?

October 13, 2026

Kristen Clarke, the NAACP's general counsel, describes how two Supreme Court decisions have severely weakened the 1965 Voting Rights Act's protections against racial discrimination in voting. The 2013 Shelby County ruling eliminated the preclearance requirement that forced jurisdictions with histories of discrimination to get federal approval before changing voting procedures, while the 2026 Louisiana v. Callais decision further restricted Section 2 by requiring proof of intentional racial disenfranchisement rather than discriminatory effects.

Who is affected

Black voters, particularly in Southern states including Louisiana, Tennessee, Alabama, South Carolina, Georgia, and Mississippi
Black lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives, especially Black Democratic women
The NAACP and multiple state NAACP conferences
Civil rights organizations including the Brennan Center for Justice
Political independents and voters across party lines experiencing declining trust in the Supreme Court
Communities participating in the "Freedom Summer" voter protection effort

What action is being taken

The NAACP and civil rights groups are conducting a voter protection effort called "Freedom Summer"
The NAACP is filing emergency lawsuits, including one to compel disclosure of the Trump administration's poll monitoring plan
Nine civil rights and labor groups, including the NAACP, are suing to prevent ICE officers from monitoring polls
Southern states are redrawing electoral maps, splitting Black voters into different Republican-leaning districts
Some states (Maryland, New Jersey, and Delaware) are enacting their own versions of a Voting Rights Act
The NAACP is holding emergency town halls to discuss ruling impacts

Why it matters

This matters because the two Supreme Court decisions have dismantled core protections of the nation's most significant civil rights law, fundamentally altering how racial discrimination in voting can be challenged and prevented. The elimination of preclearance requirements and the new intentionality standard for proving discrimination has resulted in measurable harm: Black voter turnout has dropped significantly, with the racial turnout gap growing to between 9.2 and 20.9 percentage points in five of six previously covered states by 2020. These changes threaten the political representation of Black communities and endanger the futures of Black elected officials, particularly affecting Black women lawmakers. The broader significance extends to American democracy itself, as Clarke notes the decisions enable "the full machinery of government aided by the Court disenfranchising and silencing Black America and hijacking democracy as we know it."

What's next

The House-approved John Lewis Voting Rights Act legislation awaits Senate action, though it faces filibuster obstacles and would not be signed by President Trump
Clarke advocates for Supreme Court reforms including term limits and increased ethics standards to be considered
The NAACP plans to continue protecting what remains of the Voting Rights Act through litigation and advocacy
Clarke anticipates a future "reckoning" for Trump administration officials who have broken civil rights laws
A future presidential administration could present opportunities to strengthen government protections, with Clarke noting "Where the Justice Department needs to be is not where it once was"

Read full article from source: The 19th