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The Voting Rights Act is the most progressive piece of legislation ever passed. Its sole

aim was to outlaw discriminatory practices adopted in the southern states that prevent

minority groups, especially blacks, from voting. The Voting rights act enforced the provisions of

the fifteenth amendment, which granted African Americans the right to vote. In those years,

numerous impediments had been placed against south Africans preventing them from voting,

such as poll taxes, literacy, and other unnecessary bureaucratic restrictions. 1. The result was

very few African Americans registered as voters and therefore possessed minimal political

power locally and nationally. After numerous protests agitating for minority voting rights,

President Johnson and Congress finally initiated meaningful voting rights legislation that

guaranteed everyone equal right to vote. Section five of the Voting Rights Act requires that

jurisdiction with a history of discrimination against African Americans obtain preclearance from

the United States district court of Columbia or the US attorney general’s office before any new

voting practices and procedures are passed or implemented. The paper will discuss the effect of

preclearance as enshrined in the Voting Rights Act.

The process of preclearance was to stop discrimination before it occurred. However, in

2013, the US Supreme court eviscerated vital provisions of the Act. In Shelby Country V. Holder,

the court invalidated Section 4, which listed the jurisdiction covered under section 5. The court

determined that only Congress had the power to pass new formula that could include or

exclude a jurisdiction on the preclearance list. This essentially meant that preclearance was

eliminated, and states were now making deliberate efforts to restrict voting rights. This is

1
John P. MacCoon, The Enforcement of the Preclearance Requirement of Section 5 of the
Voting Rights Act of 1965, 29 Cath. U. L. Rev. 107 (1980). Available at:
https://scholarship.law.edu/lawreview/vol29/iss1/5
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evidenced by the closure of polling stations, voter identification requirements for minorities

have become strict, and there have been widespread voter roll purges. The elimination of the

most significant protective element of the act that proactively prevented discrimination against

voters turned fifty years of reform on its head and created an environment where some groups

are unfairly targeted but cannot seek reprieve in the American justice system. There are

disparate arguments from different groups that either support or oppose the federal

government having the power of preclearance.

Opposers of the move to grant the federal government the power of clearance contend

that different governments have been involved in fraud over the years. The political

environment in the United States is highly polarized. There is a vast chasm between the

democrats and the republicans. The government in power will use its influence through voting

policies that are to its advantage. Voter suppression has been a common problem in different

jurisdictions, and this is reinforced by laws endorsed by the federal government. 2. The federal

government cannot be an impartial arbiter in issues that it has vested interests. Voting rights

are at the core of the United States democracy, and this cannot be left in the hands of a few

people in government or congress. This is must be a process that includes everyone, especially

the minority groups. The democratic systems in the United States require that everyone is

represented in government. This may not be possible if the federal government is granted the

power to enforce the preclearance requirement of the Voting Rights Act.

2
Brennancenter. "The Effects of Shelby County V. Holder." Brennan Center for Justice. Last
modified August 6, 2018. https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/policy-solutions/effects-
shelby-county-v-holder.
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Supporters of the federal government argue that there isn't a national law that guides

the administration of elections in the United States. Every state has its laws and procedures

that guide the administration of elections. This means that some jurisdictions will deliberate

pass laws that limit the voting rights of minorities3. The federal government, through the justice

department, must be allowed to determine the legality of any new laws passed by the different

states and localities.

The 2020 presidential election has only solidified my belief that the federal government

should have the power to clearance when it comes to election laws. The sole aim of the

preclearance was to protect the rights of minority groups. There has been a deliberate effort at

the state and local level to ensure voter suppression by introducing restrictive laws such as

strict voter identification, limiting the time in which mail-in ballot voting can be conducted.

There was a systematic and deliberate effort by the Trump administration to discredit the

outcome of the presidential election by filing frivolous lawsuits. However, the supreme court

ensured that the people's will was not overcome by a person's selfish interests regardless of

how the power they yield. This means the federal government, through the American justice

system, the Voting rights of minority groups are not violated. Furthermore, the United States is

governed by the rule of law, and the Justice system has proved times without number that no

one is above the law. I firmly believe the preclearance requirement of the Voting Rights can

only be enforced effectively by the federal government because it has all the resources at its

disposal.

3
Luis Fuentes-Rohwer & Guy-Uriel E. Charles, The Politics of Preclearance, 12 MICH. J. RACE &
L. 513 (2007). Available at: https://repository.law.umich.edu/mjrl/vol12/iss2/6
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In conclusion, the Voting Rights Act is the most significant piece of legislation because it

ensures the requirements of the fifteenth amendment, which provides the voting rights of

everyone are protected. Preclearance as a requirement protects the rights of minority groups

who are often the target of discriminatory and restrictive laws by different jurisdictions.

Bibliography

Brennancenter. "The Effects of Shelby County V. Holder." Brennan Center for Justice. Last

modified August 6, 2018. https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/policy-

solutions/effects-shelby-county-v-holder.

John P. MacCoon, The Enforcement of the Preclearance Requirement of Section 5 of the Voting

Rights Act of 1965, 29 Cath. U. L. Rev. 107 (1980). Available at:

https://scholarship.law.edu/lawreview/vol29/iss1/5

Luis Fuentes-Rohwer & Guy-Uriel E. Charles, The Politics of Preclearance, 12 MICH. J. RACE & L.

513 (2007). Available at: https://repository.law.umich.edu/mjrl/vol12/iss2/6