Why One Parent Has Become a “Supreme Court Voter”
Think you can endure another four years of Donald Trump as president? How about another 40 years of Trump’s Supreme Court?
During September’s debate, Trump bragged about appointing the three right-wing justices to the Supreme Court who overturned Roe v. Wade, ensuring my 13-year-old daughter and millions of other girls will grow up in a country where the government has more control over their reproductive health and future than they do.
From redistricting lawsuits to challenges to the Voting Rights Act, the Supreme Court often plays a critical role in determining the fate of voting and election cases.
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But Trump’s Supreme Court didn’t stop its attacks on our fundamental freedoms after their decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health in 2022.
In July, the Supreme Court concluded its 2024 term with a lineup of terrible decisions that undermined our freedoms, the safety of our families and our democracy. The Court’s right-wing majority overturned the ban on bump stocks used in the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history, once again put pregnant Americans’ lives at risk and struck down a longstanding precedent that protected Americans’ health and safety from large corporations. Perhaps most shocking of all, in its final decision of the term, the Court’s right-wing majority ruled that presidents are immune from prosecution for all official acts.
If Trump wins again, he could solidify right-wing control of the Supreme Court for decades. By next January, four of the nine current justices will be in their 70s, and the next president may have the opportunity to appoint some or all of their replacements. Trump has made it clear he’ll make sure those replacements are there as long as possible, acknowledging that “we like people in their 30s, so they’re there for 50 years.” The justices appointed by Trump would be the ones deciding cases concerning abortion, birth control, marriage equality, gun safety, the climate crisis and voting rights.
That’s not something I’m willing to accept for myself, my daughter or any other family in America.
Even my middle-schooler knows that the Supreme Court we have now is a “hot mess.”
I know I’m not alone. A recent survey conducted by my organization, Stand Up America, revealed that a significant majority of voters consider the selection and confirmation of new Supreme Court justices a pivotal factor in their choices for president and U.S. Senate this November. These aren’t the “Supreme Court Voters” of decades past, which tended to be conservative Republicans seeking to overturn Roe v Wade.
Our research shows that voters exposed to messages that connect this election, the Supreme Court and our fundamental freedoms are more likely to shift their vote toward the Democratic nominee and away from Trump, particularly for infrequent voters, young voters and voters of color.
That’s why Stand Up America launched a campaign earlier this year focused on educating and mobilizing millions of voters on the impact the next president will have on the U.S. Supreme Court. Since then, nearly 15,000 Americans, along with celebrities and influencers, have taken the pledge to be “Supreme Court Voters.”
Let’s face it. Once you know the facts, this isn’t a tough choice. Vice President and Democratic nominee Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz are longtime democracy champions who have already made clear their commitment to appointing fair, equitable justices to the Court who will protect our freedoms and our safety. They’ve also endorsed important structural reforms that will ensure Supreme Court justices no longer have unchecked power for life, including enacting 18-year term limits and establishing a binding code of ethics.
Even my middle-schooler knows that the Supreme Court we have now is a “hot mess,” from stripping us of our fundamental freedoms to weekly ethics scandals. Electing Kamala Harris and Tim Walz this November is the only way we can stop Trump from appointing even more right-wing justices to lifetime tenures on the Supreme Court and have a shot at reforming this broken Court for good.
With our freedoms on the line, I am committed to voting for Vice President Harris and Gov. Walz as a Supreme Court Voter this November. Take the pledge and join me.
Christina Harvey is the executive director of Stand Up America, a proud daughter of labor and a native of West Virginia. She now lives in New York City with her 13-year old daughter, Emma, and her forever-young Brooklynese husband, Eli.