ACLU of Maryland Condemns Supreme Court’s Gutting of the Voting Rights Act, Calls on States to Act

BALTIMORE, MD — The ACLU of Maryland condemns today’s decision by the U.S. Supreme Court in Louisiana v. Callais, which effectively dismantles one of the most critical remaining protections of the Voting Rights Act. By gutting Section 2, the Court has made it significantly harder to challenge racially discriminatory voting maps, opening the door for widespread vote dilution that will silence millions of Black voters and other communities of color across the country.

For decades, Section 2 has served as a vital safeguard against systems that weaken the political power of Black voters. Without it, states now face fewer consequences for drawing maps that fracture, pack, or dilute communities of color, threatening fair representation at every level of government, from Congress to local school boards. With approximately 30 million Black voters across the South and no enforceable federal mechanism to protect their representation, the stakes could not be higher.

“Today’s decision is a devastating blow to the fundamental promise of equal representation,” said Dana Vickers Shelley, Executive Director of the ACLU of Maryland. “By weakening the Voting Rights Act, the Supreme Court has turned its back on decades of progress and left millions of Black voters more vulnerable to discrimination. The Maryland Voting Rights Act maintains the right to challenge vote dilution. We will always fight for fair representation for all Marylanders. Our democracy demands nothing less.”

Yesterday, Governor Wes Moore signed the Maryland Voting Rights Act (MDVRA) into effect immediately as an emergency law, a historic and timely act of legislative foresight. With this signing, Maryland joins nine other states that have enacted state-level voting rights protections, establishing a critical line of defense precisely as federal protections are being stripped away.

The MDVRA protects Marylanders’ right to challenge vote dilution, the primary practice that Section 2 was designed to prevent at the federal level and the right that today’s ruling has now severely curtailed nationwide. Maryland voters retain the legal standing to challenge vote dilution in counties and municipalities statewide.

While the MDVRA’s protection against vote dilution is a vital first step, it is not enough. Today’s ruling makes clear that the erosion of voting rights will not stop here. The ACLU of Maryland urges the Maryland General Assembly to continue enshrining protections into state law, including explicit prohibitions on voter suppression.

The ACLU of Maryland will continue to use every tool available to defend voting rights, challenge discrimination, and ensure that every Marylander has an equal voice in our democracy.

The Supreme Court may have weakened the law, but it cannot weaken the determination of communities who have fought too long and too hard for the right to be represented.