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Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) warned Sunday that the Supreme Court\u2019s decision to gut the Voting Rights Act last week will have \u201ca devastating impact\u201d on democracy, arguing that the court further inflamed a tense redistricting arms race across the country.<\/p>\n
The court ruled 6-3 on Wednesday to significantly narrow a key provision of the 1965 law, deciding that there must be evidence or at least \u201ca strong inference\u201d of discriminatory intent in the drawing of legislative lines to prove that a map unfairly discriminates against minority voters.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened this week is nothing less than a massive and devastating blow \u2014 not only to our democracy, but particularly to people of color in the South,\u201d Warnock said during an appearance on CBS\u2019 \u201cFace the Nation.\u201d \u201cThis question about intent is on its head misleading, and it ignores our history.\u201d<\/p>\n
He noted that the racial turnout gap has widened, particularly in states previously covered by Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, since the Supreme Court struck down the law\u2019s requirement that certain states with a history of discriminatory voting practices seek \u201cpreclearance\u201d in the 2013 ruling Shelby County v. Holder.<\/i><\/p>\n
\u201cSince they removed the protections of Section 5, states that used to play old games, they’re playing new games,\u201d he told host Margaret Brennan. \u201cThey’re 21st-century Jim Crow tactics in new clothes: moving voter polls, closing polls in Black and brown communities \u2026 purging people \u2014 people literally showing up and not knowing that their names have been purged from the rolls. And the data shows that this disproportionately impacts Black and brown citizens.\u201d<\/p>\n
Warnock told Brennan he hopes for Congress to reinstate the VRA\u2019s original pre-clearance requirement for some Southern states.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not yet clear how the ruling will impact this year\u2019s midterm elections, with primary voting already underway in several states, but Republicans are already calling for Southern states to redraw their congressional maps as soon as possible. Louisiana’s governor issued an emergency order to halt primary voting on House races.<\/p>\n
Warnock \u2014 one of five Black senators \u2014 said he supports the redistricting efforts undertaken by Democrats across the country in response to the GOP\u2019s attempts to redraw congressional maps in Texas and other states ahead of the upcoming midterms elections, but he warned that \u201cthe court sadly poured fuel on this redistricting arms race.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI actually hate partisan gerrymandering. I don’t like gerrymandering, but we could not unilaterally disarm,\u201d Warnock said. \u201c[Trump] called Texas and said, literally, \u2018Give me six more seats.\u2019 So California and other states had to respond, Virginia in kind.\u201d<\/p>\n
Warnock introduced legislation alongside Sens. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Angus King (I-Maine) and Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) to ban partisan gerrymandering last year. The legislation faces slim chances of success in the Senate amid Republican opposition to a partisan gerrymandering ban.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n