The Independent View: The Voting Rights Act of 2015

James F. Sensenbrenner, (R-Wisconsin 5th District) introduced the Voting Rights Act of 2015 as a response to the 2013, Supreme Court Shelby County v. Holder decision that said while preclearance was a constitutional response to voter discrimination, it was also unconstitutional to apply it to states based on a decades-old formula.

When the justices handed down the ruling, nine states, mostly in the Deep South, as well as parts of six other states, had to preclear their voting changes with the government. His bill would modernize the act so that the preclearance rules applied equally to every state in the country.

Under the bill, a state or jurisdiction could be subject to preclearance if a court ruled that it had discriminated against voters on the basis of race five or more times in the most recent 15 years. States that stopped discriminating automatically would fall out of the bill’s protections; states that started discriminating would fall in.

In this way, the bill responds to the Supreme Court’s concerns about the dated formula and resurrects the protections of the law that have been a part of American elections for five decades. The bill also includes important transparency provisions. One of the most effective ways to suppress voting is to change the rules. The proposed Voting Rights Act would require officials to give public notice within 48 hours of certain voting changes that are made 180 days before a Federal election. Local governments may have valid reasons to change polling locations or the resources they spend on an election, but the public should be well informed about them before Election Day.

His Voting Rights Act of 2015, which has more than 100 co-sponsors, 13 of them Republicans, has been introduced in the House and referred to the Judiciary Committee, where it awaits action. Some of his colleagues view the bill as unnecessary because of the progress we have made against voter discrimination. The bill’s structure, however, ensures that preclearance will apply only if in fact discrimination occurs.

Ensuring that every eligible voter can cast a ballot without fear, deterrence and prejudice is a basic American right. He said "I would rather lose my job than suppress votes to keep it".

The Voting Rights Act not only stops discrimination but also strengthens the public’s faith that votes will be counted and elections remain fair.

The 2016 primary season has been marred by hateful rhetoric and ugly politics. Passing the Voting Rights Act of 2015 would be Congress’s most enlightened response.

I have a better solution:

1. When the Census is done, put all states on preclearance.

2. Each state has 90 days to file their prior 10 years of voting records.

3. Some states will be taken off and some will stay on.

4. Redistricting will start after this process is completed.

5. Those states that stay on will still have the ability after five years to ask to be removed from preclearance.

6. The voters still can file complaints for those states that were taken off of preclearance, if they change voting laws that adversely affects the voters.