Today, Explained Is voting doomed?
78 snips
Oct 15, 2025 
Mark Joseph Stern, a senior writer at Slate focusing on legal issues, and Ian Millhiser, a legal journalist from Vox, dive deep into the Voting Rights Act's precarious future. They discuss the implications of the Supreme Court's potential decision to gut the Act, which has protected millions since 1965. The conversation highlights how this could lead to aggressive racial gerrymandering and alter the political landscape significantly. They also explore the historical context of federalism in safeguarding voting rights and the partisan nature of current challenges.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
What Calais v. Louisiana Argues
- Calais v. Louisiana challenges the Voting Rights Act by arguing race-aware redistricting violates equal protection.
- Plaintiffs claim creating a second majority-Black district in Louisiana unfairly favors Black voters over white voters.
State Switched Sides In The Litigation
- Louisiana's legislature initially defended its new map, then reversed and sided with the plaintiffs.
- The state's officials claimed the Voting Rights Act forced them to violate the Constitution.
Recent Precedent Protected The VRA
- In Allen v. Milligan (2023) the Supreme Court upheld Section 2 protections that sometimes require considering race in redistricting.
- The Court said those race-conscious remedies do not violate the Equal Protection Clause or the 15th Amendment.