Rep. Richmond Responds to Supreme Court Ruling on Shelby County v. Holder

Statement

Congressman Cedric Richmond (LA-02) released the following statement in response to the recent Supreme Court ruling on Shelby County v. Holder:

"I am terribly disturbed and disappointed by the Supreme Court's ruling regarding the constitutionality of section 4 of the Voting Rights Act. This decision sets us back as a nation almost 50 years. The legislators at the Supreme Court took it upon themselves to disregard the will of the American people and enable these previously covered jurisdictions to impede and discourage minorities from voting in the future. Despite our gains as a country to overcome prejudice, discrimination and racial animus are still legitimate problems in our society, especially for states in the South. It saddens me that the current composition of Congress does not lend itself to confidence in being able to fix this issue in the near term, thus there will be no protection for voters in the upcoming election cycle."

This decision is an outright smack in the face to those who fought and gave their lives for the sacred right to vote. It disregards all evidence of discrimination presented in the lead up to the 2006 re-authorization and the evidence that we saw as recently as the 2012 election cycle."

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