Statement of Attorney General Phil Weiser on U.S. Supreme Court ruling in voting rights cases

July 1, 2021 (DENVER)—Attorney General Phil Weiser released the following statement regarding today’s U.S. Supreme Court ruling in two key voting-rights cases:

“For nearly 40 years, Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act barred voting restrictions that have the effect of limiting citizens’ right to vote based on race. Courts have long used a two-part test under Section 2 to ensure the freedom to vote without infringing on the States’ role in conducting elections. Today’s Supreme Court ruling makes it more difficult to have courts limit discriminatory voting laws or procedures. With its Shelby County decision in 2013 and today’s ruling, the Court has undone necessary protections the Voting Rights Act provided for decades.

“The purpose of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 was to address all efforts—those large and small—to undermine the right to vote by people of color. Americans aspire to realize a nation and political system where voting and the right to participate in our political process is equal for all, but we are not there yet. Recent efforts by many state legislatures to roll back voting rights demonstrate that we still have a lot of work to do to form a more perfect union.

“To restore and strengthen the Voting Rights Act of 1965, Congress must pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Act. And I will continue to fight to protect the most sacred right we have as Americans—the right to vote.”

The cases are Brnovich v. Democratic National Committee and Arizona Republican Party v. Democratic National Committee. Weiser was part a coalition of 18 attorneys general that filed an amicus brief defending the Voting Rights Act in these cases.

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