Voting rights are a perennial topic in American politics. Recent
elections and the Supreme Court's decision in Shelby County v.
Holder, which struck down key enforcement provisions in the Voting
Rights Act (VRA), have only placed further emphasis on the debate
over voter disenfranchaisement. Over the past five decades, both
Democrats and Republicans in Congress have consistently voted to
expand the protections offered to vulnerable voters by the Voting
Rights Act. And yet, the administration of the VRA has become more
fragmented and judicial interpretation of its terms has become much
less generous. Why have Republicans consistently adopted
administrative and judicial decisions that undermine legislation
they repeatedly endorse? Ballot Blocked shows how the divergent
trajectories of legislation, administration, and judicial
interpretation in voting rights policymaking derive largely from
efforts by conservative politicians to narrow the scope of federal
enforcement while at the same time preserving their public
reputations as supporters of racial equality and minority voting
rights. Jesse H. Rhodes argues that conservatives adopt a
paradoxical strategy in which they acquiesce to expansive voting
rights protections in Congress (where decisions are visible and
easily traceable) while simultaneously narrowing the scope of
federal enforcement via administrative and judicial maneuvers
(which are less visible and harder to trace). Over time, the
repeated execution of this strategy has enabled a conservative
Supreme Court to exercise preponderant influence over the scope of
federal enforcement.
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