The US Supreme Court unexpectedly strengthened the Voting Rights Act by reportedly rejecting a congressional district design prepared by Republicans in Alabama and also upholding a ruling that calls for a second district with a majority of Black people.
The historic statute, passed in 1965 under the guise of safeguarding minority rights at the polls, has been scaled back twice in the past ten years by the same court that rendered the 5-4 judgment.
Alabama, a state having seven US congressional seats and a 27% Black population, was deemed necessary for a second mainly Black district under the Voting Rights Act, according to Democrats and civil rights campaigners.
Republicans and their supporters however wanted to allow legislators more freedom to create maps that weren’t based on catering to protected interest groups or based upon racial characteristics.
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