Jeffries warns court: Hands off Voting Rights Act!
On the day before the US Supreme Court was to hear a challenge to the 1965 Voting Rights Act, US Rep. Hakeem Jeffries and other members of the Congressional Black Caucus spoke out on the House floor to call on the country’s highest court to preserve the 48 year old law.
Jeffries (D-East New York-Flatlands) called the Voting Rights Act a law that “relates to the integrity of our democracy” during his speech on Feb. 26.
Under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, districts in 16 states, including New York, with large numbers of minority voters were required to obtain approval from either the Department of Justice or a three-judge Federal Court panel in Washington, D.C. before instituting changes in voting laws.