Legal Definitions - Voting Rights Act

The Voting Rights Act is a landmark federal law in the United States designed to overcome legal barriers at the state and local levels that historically prevented minority groups, particularly African Americans, from exercising their fundamental right to vote. Enacted in 1965, its primary goal is to prohibit racial discrimination in voting and ensure that all eligible citizens have an equal opportunity to participate in the democratic process, regardless of their race, color, or membership in a language minority group.

This Act works in several crucial ways to protect voting rights:

• It outlaws discriminatory practices, such as literacy tests or other subjective "tests or devices," that were historically used to disenfranchise minority voters.
• It requires certain jurisdictions with significant populations of language minorities to provide voting materials and assistance in languages other than English to ensure accessibility.
• It prohibits practices that dilute the voting power of minority groups, such as drawing electoral district lines in a way that minimizes their ability to elect their preferred candidates.
• Historically, and in some forms still, it required certain areas with a documented history of voting discrimination to obtain federal approval before making changes to their voting laws.

Here are some examples illustrating the application of the Voting Rights Act:

• Example 1: Ensuring Language Access
  Imagine a county where a significant portion of the population primarily speaks Korean. If this county decided to only print ballots and provide voting instructions in English, it would likely violate the Voting Rights Act. The Act mandates that jurisdictions with substantial language minority populations must provide voting materials and assistance in those languages to ensure that all eligible citizens can understand and cast their votes effectively. This protection ensures that language barriers do not disenfranchise voters.
• Example 2: Protecting Against Vote Dilution
  Consider a city where a vibrant Latino community, traditionally voting together, has been able to elect a representative to the city council. If the city council were to redraw the electoral district boundaries in a way that intentionally divides this community into three separate districts, each with a majority of non-minority voters, it would significantly weaken their collective voting power. The Voting Rights Act prohibits such practices, known as vote dilution, which aim to diminish the ability of a minority group to elect candidates of their choice by spreading their votes too thinly across multiple districts or submerging them within larger, majority-controlled districts.
• Example 3: Eliminating Discriminatory Barriers
  Suppose a state legislature proposes a new law requiring all citizens to pass a highly complex and subjective "civic engagement assessment" before they can register to vote. Historically, such tests were often administered unfairly and used to prevent minority citizens from registering. The Voting Rights Act specifically outlaws the use of literacy tests or similar "tests or devices" as a prerequisite for voter registration, recognizing them as tools of discrimination. This provision ensures that arbitrary and biased hurdles are not erected to prevent eligible citizens from exercising their franchise.