Tell Judges to Uphold the Voting Rights Act

The fight to keep the Voting Rights Act the law of the land just got even harder. 

Two conservative judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit just voted to gut what is left of the Voting Rights Act. That follows the disastrous 2013 Shelby v. Holder decision that had already significantly weakened the law.

The VRA is a landmark piece of civic rights legislation. It passed in 1965, and it is intended to ensure that no federal, state, or local government could in any way impede people from voting because of their race. 

Countless bills have been introduced to strengthen the VRA and the right to vote in recent years, but thanks to Republican obstruction, none of them have passed. 

Sign the petition to urge judges to uphold the Voting Rights Act. 

The ruling states that only the U.S. Justice Department can file VRA Section 2 lawsuits. That means private voters and voting rights organizations do not have the right to initiate lawsuits. 

If this decision stands, one of the people’s greatest tools against voter suppression and gerrymandering — the right to challenge in court — will be gutted. 

The Department of Justice does not have the resources — or oftentimes the political interest — to file lawsuits to protect the right to vote. 

Sign the petition today to protect the Voting Rights Act.