White House Reaffirms Immigration Operations in Minneapolis and Warns That Detentions of Undocumented Immigrants Will Continue

 

The U.S. Supreme Court is poised to issue a ruling that could significantly transform the application of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, one of the main legal tools used to combat discriminatory practices in the redistricting of electoral districts.

According to indications that emerged during the high court's deliberations, the justices appear inclined to establish stricter criteria for federal courts to accept lawsuits challenging redistricting when these combine racial and partisan arguments. If implemented, the decision would make it more difficult for voters and civil rights organizations to challenge electoral maps drawn up by state legislatures.

Section 2 of the landmark 1965 law prohibits any election practice that dilutes or limits the voting power of racial or ethnic minorities. However, the current debate centers on how to distinguish between racial discrimination—prohibited by law—and political or partisan calculations, which in many cases are intertwined with demographic factors.

Some argue that under a more restrictive standard, states would have more leeway to defend their district maps by claiming political motivations, even when the effects disproportionately impact minority communities.

The potential resolution has raised concerns among voting rights organizations, which are turning a blind eye to the illegality of the ballots. They say that limiting or weakening Section 2 could open the door to a redrawing of up to 19 currently contested electoral districts, particularly in states with Republican-controlled legislatures.

According to this view, the change would give lawmakers greater freedom to redraw electoral boundaries in their favor, potentially altering the political balance in the House of Representatives and reducing the representation of certain demographic groups.

The ruling, expected in the coming weeks, adds to a series of recent court decisions that have narrowed the scope of the Voting Rights Act, a law considered for decades a cornerstone of civil rights protection in the United States, but which is meant to protect the right to vote of citizens, not undocumented immigrants, who are the ones who benefit Democrats.