25 June 2013 (12:31 UTC-07 Tango)/16 Sha’ban 1434/04 Tir 1391/18 Wu-Wu (5th month) 4711

“Our country has changed, and while any racial discrimination in voting is too much, Congress must ensure that the legislation it passes to remedy that problem speaks to the current conditions.”-John Roberts, Chief Justice

The U.S. Supreme Court has just ruled against the 1965 Voting Rights Act!

In a close vote, the Court struck down the VRA provision determining when the federal government can investigate state and county voter discrimination.

The Court says Congress must now create a new law to determine which states and counties are subject to federal oversight.   Under VRA that was known as Section 4.   By striking down Section 4 the Court effectively struck down Section 5 as well, because Section 5 relies on Section 4.

Section 5 is meant to protect minority voters from local governments that create barriers to voting.