The Court v. The Voters The Troubling Story of How the Supreme Court Has Undermined Voting Rights

by Douglas, Joshua A.

• ISBN13: 9780807010938
• ISBN10: 0807010936
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2024-05-14
• Publisher: Beacon Press

Summary

An urgent and gripping look at the erosion of voting rights and its implications for democracy, told through the stories of 9 Supreme Court decisions—and the next looming case

In The Court v. The Voters, law professor Joshua Douglas takes us behind the scenes of significant cases in voting rights—some surprising and unknown, some familiar—to investigate the historic crossroads that have irrevocably changed our elections and the nation. In crisp and accessible prose, Douglas tells the story of each case, sheds light on the intractable election problems we face as a result, and highlights the unique role the highest court has played in producing a broken electoral system.

Douglas charts infamous cases like:

• Bush v. Gore, which opened the door to many election law claims
• Citizens United, which contributed to skewed representation—but perhaps not in the way you might think
• Shelby County v. Holder, which gutted the vital protections of the Voting Rights Act
• Crawford v. Marion County Elections Board, which allowed states to enforce voter ID laws and make it harder for people to vote

The Court v. The Voters powerfully reminds us of the tangible, real-world effects from the Court’s voting rights decisions. While we can—and should—lament the democracy that might have been, Douglas argues that we can—and should—double down in our efforts to protect the right to vote.

Author Biography

Joshua Douglas is a law professor at the University of Kentucky College of Law and legal expert invested and engaged in helping everyday people understand our elections. His media commentaries have appeared in the New York Times, CNN, Washington Post, LA Times, USA Today, Reuters, Politico, The Atlantic, Huffington Post, and Slate, among others, and he has been quoted in major newspapers and on NPR stations throughout the country. He is the author of a previous book, Vote For US: How to Take Back Our Elections and Change the Future of Voting. You can find him active on Twitter at @JoshuaADouglas.

Table of Contents

Introduction

CHAPTER 1
The 1980 Election and the Beginning of the End:
Anderson v. Celebrezze (1983)

CHAPTER 2
A Vote for Donald Duck:
Burdick v. Takushi (1992)

CHAPTER 3
The Fight over Voter ID:
Crawford v. Marion County Election Board (2008)

CHAPTER 4
The Stigma of Felon Disenfranchisement:
Richardson v. Ramirez (1974)

CHAPTER 5
Money Talks:
Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010)

CHAPTER 6
An “Embarrassing Judicial Fart”:
Bush v. Gore (2000)

CHAPTER 7
Throwing Away Your Umbrella During a Rainstorm:
Shelby County v. Holder (2013)

CHAPTER 8
An Activist Court:
Brnovich v. Democratic National Committee (2021)

CHAPTER 9
Politicians Gone Wild:
Rucho v. Common Cause (2019)

CHAPTER 10
The Next Looming Case

Conclusion
Acknowledgments
Notes
Index