The Supreme Court’s new term began today, with Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson taking the bench for the first time. She’ll be part of arguments and cases that could make this term just as important as last year’s, which involved the overturning of Roe v. Wade, expansion of gun rights, the erosion of the EPA’s ability to deal with climate change, and more.
This term includes a voting rights case that could determine how the 2024 election might unfold, giving states unheard-of power to decide the outcome.
“We're going to see them [justices] really whittle away at the last remaining part of the Voting Rights Act that stands as protection against things like racial gerrymandering and vote dilution,” says Jessica Levinson, professor at Loyola Law School.
She continues, “The big issue legally is: When it comes to a challenge for the Voting Rights Act, do you have to show that there's a discriminatory effect, which is what I think the law currently requires, or discriminatory intent, which is much more difficult and would … make those cases, frankly, all but impossible to win?”
The court is also primed to weaken legal protections against discrimination at colleges and the ballot box.