voting rights
May 29, 2024 -
Ari Berman, a national voting rights correspondent for Mother Jones, has covered voting rights and democracy issues for over a decade. He talked with Facing South about his new book "Minority Rule," the ongoing attacks on voting, and his hopes for the future of American democracy ahead of the 2024 elections.
November 21, 2023 -
This year's off-year elections saw mixed results for Democrats in the South, with progressives scoring victories in Kentucky and Virginia — and staying competitive in Mississippi — while the bulk of races still went to Republicans. What do the results tell us about 2024 and beyond?
May 12, 2023 -
Some states have taken steps to restore voting rights for people with felony convictions, but Republican officials in places including Florida and North Carolina later reversed the reforms. Proponents of permanent disenfranchisement say it promotes respect for the law, but a growing body of evidence suggests that such policies make their targets more likely to break it again.
May 4, 2022 -
Republican senators recently grilled Biden judicial nominee Nancy Abudu, a civil rights lawyer who has protected abortion rights and fought voter suppression in the Deep South. Senators also heard from four other nominees, all women of color. At least one nominee has bipartisan support.
April 21, 2022 -
Over protests by the state's Black lawmakers, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis pushed his fellow Republicans to adopt a congressional district map that is expected to slash the number of Black representatives for the state. The new map could be challenged in court, but appellate courts have recently sided with the GOP in voting rights cases.
March 11, 2022 -
Thousands of people gathered recently in Alabama for the 57th anniversary of the historic Selma to Montgomery March for voting rights, which was met with police violence as peaceful demonstrators tried to cross a bridge named for a Klan leader. This year's event took place as state legislatures across the South are passing bills to limit voting and protesting.
December 1, 2021 -
Voting rights activists are growing impatient as Senate Republicans' use of the filibuster continues to obstruct popular pro-democracy legislation. They warn that the window for meaningful legislative action is closing as international observers sound the alarm about rising U.S. authoritarianism.
