voting rights

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In Biggest Battleground State, 2 Back-to-Back Rulings

SCOTUS OKs counting certain provisional ballots in Pennsylvania; GOP sees win in state's high court

(Newser) - The Supreme Court on Friday rejected an emergency appeal from Republicans that could have led to thousands of provisional ballots not being counted in Pennsylvania as the presidential campaigns vie in the final days before the election in the nation's biggest battleground state. The justices left in place a...

Nebraska Supreme Court: Former Felons Can Vote

Court rules that secretary of state can't strip voting rights from people with convictions

(Newser) - Nebraska's top court has made a decision that could affect some tight election races in the state. In a split decision issued Wednesday, the Nebraska Supreme Court ruled that people with felony convictions who have completed their sentences can register to vote, the Omaha World-Herald reports. The court ruled...

Supreme Court Delivers Bad News to Alabama GOP

SCOTUS will allow redrawing of congressional map to go forward, over state's objections

(Newser) - The Supreme Court on Tuesday allowed the drawing of a new Alabama congressional map with greater representation for Black voters to proceed, rejecting the state's plea to retain Republican-drawn lines that were struck down by a lower court. In refusing to intervene, the justices, without any noted dissent, allowed...

With Clock Running Out, a Slew of Big SCOTUS Cases Loom

Affirmative action and religious and gay rights are also on the agenda before this term closes

(Newser) - The Supreme Court is getting ready to decide some of its biggest cases of the term. The high court has 10 opinions left to release over the next week before the justices begin their summer break. As is typical, the last opinions to be released cover some of the most...

Surprise SCOTUS Ruling Hands Victory to State's Black Voters

Decision orders creation of second Black-majority district in Alabama

(Newser) - The Supreme Court on Thursday issued a surprising 5-4 ruling in favor of Black voters in a congressional redistricting case, ordering the creation of a second district with a large Black population, per the AP . Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Brett Kavanaugh joined with the court's liberals in...

Pope Approves 'Significant Crack in Stained-Glass Ceiling'

Women will have the right to vote at an upcoming meeting of bishops

(Newser) - Pope Francis has decided to give women the right to vote at an upcoming meeting of bishops, and the AP reports that's a historic reform that reflects his hopes to give women greater decision-making responsibilities and laypeople more say in the life of the Catholic Church. Francis approved changes...

Biden Advocates Voting Rights on Selma Pilgrimage

'The threshold of democracy' is at stake, president says in address marking 'Bloody Sunday'

(Newser) - Marking the 58th anniversary of "Bloody Sunday," when Alabama state troopers clubbed and tear-gassed peaceful marchers opposing discrimination, President Biden returned to advocate new voting rights legislation. The violence that day at the Edmund Pettus Bridge outraged many Americans and helped lead to passage of the 1965 Voting...

US Sues Arizona Over Its New Voting Law

Tens of thousands could be disenfranchised without proof of citizenship, critics say

(Newser) - The Justice Department is suing Arizona over a new law requiring proof of citizenship to vote in presidential elections, calling it a "textbook violation" of the National Voter Registration Act. The lawsuit filed Tuesday seeks to overturn House Bill 2492, passed in March and scheduled to take effect in...

Black Woman Who Tried to Register to Vote Handed 6 Years

Prosecutors alleged Pamela Moses knew she wasn't eligible to vote, submitted forms anyway

(Newser) - A Black woman in Tennessee was handed a sentence of six years and one day after being found guilty of illegally registering to vote. Pamela Moses' cases is attracting national attention due to its particulars: The 44-year-old says she went through the system and just followed the process that "...

Alabama Supreme Court Ruling Is Good News for GOP

No new congressional districts must be drawn this year

(Newser) - The Supreme Court put on hold a lower court ruling that Alabama must draw new congressional districts before the 2022 elections to increase Black voting power. The high court order boosts Republican chances to hold six of the state’s seven seats in the House of Representatives, the AP reports....

Arizona Party Punishes Sinema for Vote on Filibuster

Chairwoman says voting rights are more important than Senate rules

(Newser) - Three years after becoming a hero to Arizona Democrats for winning a US Senate seat long held by Republicans, Sen. Krysten Sinema was formally censured Saturday by the state party for her part in blocking voting rights legislation. The Arizona Democratic Party's executive committee cited Sinema's vote against...

Mitch McConnell Contrasts Black Voters, American Voters

Senator's rep says he misspoke, critics disagree

(Newser) - Asked Wednesday to respond to voters of color concerned that they will be unable to vote in the midterm elections without passage of the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, Mitch McConnell put it this way : "The concern is misplaced because if you look at the statistics, African American...

Voting Rights Bill Collapses
Voting Rights Bill Collapses
Jan 20, 2022 1:18 AM CST

Voting Rights Bill Collapses

Manchin, Sinema won't vote to change filibuster rules

(Newser) - Voting legislation that Democrats and civil rights leaders say is vital to protecting democracy collapsed when two senators refused to join their own party in changing Senate rules to overcome a Republican filibuster after a raw, emotional debate, the AP reports. The outcome Wednesday night was a stinging defeat for...

Giant Swing in Polls Doesn't Bode Well for Democrats

Gallup puts GOP up 5 points in US support, a shift from trailing by 9

(Newser) - The midterm elections could spell disaster for President Biden and the Democrats, if recent polling is any indication. A new Gallup poll shows an average of 47% of Americans surveyed in the fourth quarter of 2021 identified with or leaned toward the Republican Party compared to 42% for the Democratic...

A 'Seminal Moment' for Biden?
A 'Seminal
Moment'
for Biden?
OPINION
Jan 14, 2022 10:59 AM CST

A 'Seminal Moment' for Biden?

Columnists assess his bad week

(Newser) - Joe Biden had one of the worst days of his presidency on Thursday—the Supreme Court shot down his workplace vaccine mandate and Sen. Kyrsten Sinema torpedoed his plan to change the filibuster and allow voting rights legislation to pass. Related coverage, especially in op-eds, has been brutal:
  • Bad to
...

Biden's Voting Rights Push Runs Into Sinema
Sinema Won't Give on Filibuster
Jan 13, 2022 3:34 PM CST

Sinema Won't Give on Filibuster

Biden's voting rights push runs into Arizona Democrat's opposition to altering the rule

(Newser) - Before President Biden could arrive at the Capitol on Thursday to lobby Senate Democrats on changing the filibuster rule and passing voting rights legislation, one of them made clear she'd be no help. Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema delivered the news in a floor speech, the New York Times reports,...

Obama: Nix the Filibuster, Pass Voting Rights Legislation

In first op-ed since leaving office, former president calls on Senate to 'do the right thing'

(Newser) - President Biden recently called for altering Senate rules if necessary to remove the obstacle of the filibuster so that voting rights legislation can be passed. Now, a big voice is joining in that same chorus. In what USA Today says is his first op-ed since leaving office in 2017, former...

Biden: 'Turning Point' on Voting Rights Is Coming

'Will we choose democracy over autocracy, light over shadow, justice over injustice?'

(Newser) - Pounding his fist for emphasis, President Biden challenged senators on Tuesday to “stand against voter suppression," urging them to change Senate rules in order to pass voting rights legislation that Republicans are blocking from debate and votes. Biden told a crowd in Atlanta that he'd been having...

Biden Plans Controversial Move on Voting Rights Bill

President will endorse filibuster 'carve-out' on the issue

(Newser) - President Biden travels to Georgia on Tuesday to speak about voting rights, and the New York Times reports he will back a controversial change in Senate rules to try to get legislation passed. The president will call for the Senate to ditch the usual filibuster rules on this issue alone...

Schumer: Senate Will Vote on Changing Filibuster

He says vote will be held by MLK Day

(Newser) - Unless Republicans change course and stop blocking voting rights legislation , the Senate will vote this month on changing filibuster rules, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Monday. In a letter to Democratic colleagues, Schumer said that if Republicans don't budge, "the Senate will debate and consider changes to...

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