Court upholds discrimination provision in voting act

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By Mark Wilson, Getty Images

Attorney General Eric Holder's Justice Department is scheduled to examine six other redistricting plans in the next six weeks.
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The ruling comes as the Justice Department is being deluged with applications from states and localities asking for pre-approval of new boundaries for congressional, state legislative and other voting districts, which are being redrawn after the 2010 Census. As of last week, the Justice Department had 794 "pre-clearance" cases pending.

In the court case brought by Shelby County, Ala., county officials argued that Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, which requires the advance approval, has cost "significant taxpayer dollars, time and energy" — and that the county had to delay at least one election while it waited for approval.

Judge John Bates of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ruled in a 151-page opinion that "the modern existence of intentional racial discrimination in voting" justifies the 2006 decision by Congress to extend the Voting Rights Act through 2031.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/politics/story/2011-09-21/redistricting-voting-rights/50501544/1