In a Major Victory, the Supreme Court Didn’t Break Democracy
Ten years after Chief Justice John Roberts struck down Section 5 in Shelby County, he spared a different critical provision of the Voting Rights Act.

As the founder of Democracy Docket and Partner at Elias Law Group, Marc Elias is a nationally recognized authority in voting rights, redistricting and law. In 2020, Marc led the historic legal effort to protect voting rights, winning over 60 lawsuits against the GOP’s efforts to suppress the vote. As Republicans continue to mount aggressive challenges to voting, Marc continues to fight back in court and on Twitter. Fighting for democracy by his side is Marc’s Portuguese Water Dog named Bode.
Ten years after Chief Justice John Roberts struck down Section 5 in Shelby County, he spared a different critical provision of the Voting Rights Act.
The names of the states change, but the results are the same: voting for minorities and young voters becomes harder and elections become less free and fair.
If Republican leaders have had a change of heart about voting by mail, no one has told their lawyers or Republican-controlled legislatures.
Please stop calling Donald Trump’s indictment in New York a test of our democracy. It is just the latest insult he and his supporters have hurled at it.
The government doesn’t wait until the next bank failure to write its playbook. We certainly shouldn’t wait for the next crisis in our democracy, either.
If there was any doubt where Brad Raffensperger stands on voting rights, he has put it to rest. He is in lockstep with the Republican Party.
In 2016, the Arizona Legislature passed a ban on ballot collection that was aimed at decreasing electoral participation by minorities, especially among the state’s large Latino community.
My message to state Democratic leaders is simple: Use your power to expand voting rights and protect democracy.
If it is close enough, the outcome of redistricting litigation may be decisive in who holds the speaker’s gavel on Jan. 3, 2025.
North Carolina’s Republican-controlled Legislature has never been shy about abusing its power to undermine free and fair elections.
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