Rep. Stansbury Statement on SCOTUS Decision on Voting Rights

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, Congresswoman Melanie Stansbury (NM-01)issued the following statement in response to the Supreme Court’s 6-3 Decision in the State of Louisiana V. Callais, impacting the Voting Rights Act and the passage of new congressional maps in Florida:

“The right to vote is sacred—and the very foundation of our democracy and the American promise,” said Rep. Stansbury. “Today’s 6-3 decision by the Supreme Court in the Callais case is a devastating setback in the long fight for justice, equality, and fair representation. In gutting the enforcement of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, the Court has weakened the right of every American to have their voice heard at the ballot box and turns back the clock on generations of hard-fought progress. At a time when so many Americans are already deeply concerned about free and fair elections—it is more critical than ever that we organize and mobilize to ensure Americans’ voices are heard.

At the same time, states with long histories of discrimination—which the Voting Rights Act was designed to combat—are moving quickly to gerrymander their districts. Hours after the Supreme Court’s decision, the Florida legislature passed deeply gerrymandered and likely unconstitutional maps under state law. Now, Mississippi is saying it will follow suit. As Justice Elena Kagan penned in her dissent, this decision has “laid the groundwork” for the largest reduction in representation since Reconstruction by eviscerating the law “born of the literal blood of Union soldiers and civil rights marchers.” As the VRA has helped usher in “awe-inspiring change” in “bringing this Nation closer to fulfilling the ideals of democracy and racial equality.

Today’s decision reminds us that this is a generational fight—that the arc of history is long and we must continue to bend it towards justice. That means fighting to pass the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, securing our elections, getting big money out of politics, and ensuring that we continue to organize and mobilize and show up to exercise our rights, now more than ever.”

If you would like to talk to the Congresswoman about these decisions, please email RepStansburyPress@mail.house.gov

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