History Listory

A chronological record of major political events in modern American history.

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Suppress Black Voters

2006

2006-06-28 Courts ruled that States can redistrict as many times as they want (see Leage of United Latin American Citizens v Perry, Governor of Texas).

https://thearp.org/litigation/league-united-american-latin-citizens-v-perry/

https://www.ncsl.org/elections-and-campaigns/mid-decade-redistricting

https://www.congress.gov/crs-product/IF13082

2013

2013-06-25 Courts tossed out a rule in the Voting Rights Act that would require states with an extensive history of racial discrimination to submit any changes in their election policies or maps to the federal government for advance review before putting them into effect (see Shelby County, Alabama v. Holder, Attorney General).

https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/preclearance-under-voting-rights-act

https://scholarship.law.slu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1129&context=lawjournalonline

https://www.facebook.com/reel/940517798780271

https://www.cnn.com/2026/05/01/politics/video/van-jones-reacts-to-voting-rights-decision-ldn-digvid-vrtc

https://x.com/VanJones68/status/2049667941826806033

2019

2019-04-01 Right wing operatives Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman paid for a robocall campaign in New York to suppress the Black vote.

https://lawyerscommittee.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/COMPLAINT-FINAL-filed.pdf

2019-06-17 SCOTUS ruled that federal courts couldn’t stop states from drawing lines on a partisan basis and had no authority to resolve partisan gerrymandering claims (see Rucho v. Common Cause).

https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/18pdf/18-422_9ol1.pdf

https://www.commoncause.org/work/common-cause-v-rucho/

2020

2020-08-01 Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkhman continued their robocall campaign in Detroit to suppress Black voters. Both plead no contest to voter intimidation August 2025.

https://www.michigan.gov/ag/news/press-releases/2025/08/01/burkman-and-wohl-plead-to-intimidating-voters-in-robocall-case

2023

2023-06-09 SCOTUS ruled that Alabama discriminated against Black voters.

https://eji.org/news/supreme-court-rules-alabama-discriminated-against-black-voters/

2024

2024-05-06 A group of white voters claimed the Louisiana congressional map “racially stigmatizes”, “racially stereotypes”, and “racially maligns” them.

https://www.cnn.com/2024/05/06/politics/louisiana-congressional-map-voting-rights-act

2025

2025-10-15 A group of 12 self-described non-African American voters claimed that the Louisiana congressional map “injured” their “personal dignity”.

https://transcripts.cnn.com/show/foavb/date/2024-05-11/segment/01

2026

2026-04-29 SCOTUS struck down a Louisiana redistricting map by a vote of 6-3. SCOTUS also destroyed key voting rights provisions in the Voting Rights Act of 1965 which was originally designed to outlaw discriminatory voting practices that would disenfranchise Black voters.

https://www.cato.org/blog/america-has-changed-so-voting-rights-act-section-5-no-longer-constitutional

https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-voting-rights-congressional-redistricting-louisiana-aa5d7dbde7c13654f341d152c2ad5229

https://www.scotusblog.com/2026/04/in-major-voting-rights-act-case-supreme-court-strikes-down-redistricting-map-challenged-as-racia/

https://www.aclu.org/press-releases/supreme-court-strikes-down-louisiana-map-and-destroys-key-voting-rights-act-provision

https://www.npr.org/2026/05/03/nx-s1-5806270/in-louisiana-case-the-supreme-court-weakens-a-central-part-of-the-voting-rights-act

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/supreme-court-louisiana-redistricting-ruling-take-effect-immediately-alito-jackson/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=anVvwhRtSAo&list=WL&index=2&t=128s

2026-04-29 SCOTUS ruled that anyone challenging a congressional map could only prevail if they had strong evidence the State intentionally drew its districts to afford minority voters less opportunity.

https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/25pdf/24-109_21o3.pdf

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/apr/29/supreme-court-louisiana-congressional-map-case-ruling

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/clyw3p7xv4wo

2026-04-30 Louisiana suspended congressional primaries so they could redraw their maps.

https://apnews.com/article/congress-louisiana-primaries-supreme-court-03cdb6951d7fefb448bfd2f37f98c0ea

https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/louisiana-landry-election-suspension-supreme-court-callais/

https://www.sos.la.gov/ElectionsAndVoting/GetElectionInformation/ReviewTypesOfElections/ClosedPartyPrimaryElections/Pages/default.aspx

2026 May

2026-05-03 Alabama Governor Kay Ivey called a special session to redraw the state’s congressional map and revert back to one that would eliminate a Democrat-held seat, creating a 7-0 Republican delegation.

https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/chaos-alabama-prepares-to-eliminate-majority-black-districts-while-moving-forward-with-elections-it-may-annul/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jQz5EsQE8Pc

2026-05-04 Mississippi and Florida called a special session to redraw state districting maps to gain favor with Republicans and disenfranchise Black voters.

https://mississippitoday.org/2026/05/04/old-capitol-mississippi-redistricting/

https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/desantis-signs-gerrymandered-florida-map-into-law/

2026-05-05 Even after Louisiana received more than 42,000 absentee ballots the governor declared a state of emergency and suspended the election so new maps could be drawn. The new map eliminated one of two majority Black districts.

https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/louisiana-governor-discarding-45000-votes-not-a-big-deal-and-not-my-fault/

https://www.americanprogress.org/article/the-supreme-courts-callais-decisions-undermine-the-voting-rights-act-and-sow-election-chaos/

https://lailluminator.com/briefs/42000-louisianians-voted-absentee-before-gov-landry-suspended-us-house-primaries/

2026-05-06 After Tennessee divided up Memphis into three districts, Tennessee Republicans insisted they were unaware they were disenfranchising Black voters. When Senator Lamar asked Senator Stevens if he was aware that Memphis is predominantly African American, he said he was not aware.

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/5G0YmyaCva4

TIMESTAMP 15:34 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x9U71_dAEC8&t=6s

2026-05-07 When Alabama called for a special session to redraw its maps, it forced a vote while people were actively evacuating during a tornado warning.

https://newrepublic.com/post/210063/alabama-republicans-vote-gerrymander-state-tornado-sirens-flood

https://alabamareflector.com/2026/05/06/amid-protests-flooding-and-evacuations-alabama-legislature-passes-special-election-bills/

2026-05-07 Trump pressured South Carolina to start their redistricting process. Not the will of the people – the will of Trump.

https://thehill.com/homenews/5868640-clyburn-trump-sc-redistricting/

https://scdailygazette.com/2026/05/07/house-gop-releases-white-house-map-of-sc-voting-lines/

https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/south-carolina-clears-first-hurdle-on-path-to-gerrymander-eliminate-black-district/

2026-05-07 Tennessee approved a new congressional map that breaks up a majority-black city into three Republican-leaning districts.

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/watch-tennessee-democrats-lock-arms-in-protest-as-gop-lawmakers-approve-new-congressional-map

https://www.cnn.com/2026/05/07/politics/tennessee-redistricting-republicans-steve-cohen-us-house

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/tennessee-passes-new-congressional-map-likely-flip-final-dem-seat-protests-erupt-inside-capitol

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2026-election/tennessee-republicans-pass-map-splitting-states-lone-majority-black-di-rcna343934

https://www.npr.org/2026/05/07/nx-s1-5815023/tennessee-redistricting-map-passage

026-05-26 A federal court blocked the Alabama House map calling it unfair to Black voters.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pjhHbZ8SrdA&list=WL&index=7&t=77s

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/federal-court-blocks-alabama-plan-for-new-congressional-districts-that-could-help-republicans

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/may/26/alabama-new-congressional-map-struck-down

https://apnews.com/article/redistricting-congress-alabama-voting-rights-trump-b67125657b36e9b915ea9bc5d587d08c

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/court-alabama-congressional-district-midterms/

2026-05-27 South Carolina Senate rejected the GOP attempt to eliminate the last-standing Democratic district after 12 Republicans joined Democrats to vote against it. Representative Jim Clyburn stated, “The people who drew that map – some of them may not have ever set foot in South Carolina – this White House says to hell with the process – to hell with the Constitution”.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xHxpk7KLxeE&list=WL&index=2&t=92s

https://www.cnn.com/2026/05/26/politics/south-carolina-senate-redistricting-jim-clyburn

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/may/26/south-carolina-republicans-redistricting

2026-05-29 Louisiana lawmakers approved a map to eliminate a majority Black district.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=doWnEQ1pIZw&list=WL&index=5

https://blackchronicle.com/national/louisiana-lawmakers-approve-new-congressional-map-eliminating-majority-black-district/

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/louisiana-passes-new-congressional-map-to-eliminate-majority-black-district-give-gop-another-seat

2026 June

2026-06-10 Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama have never elected a Black representative outside a majority-Black district.

https://www.facingsouth.org/2026/06/what-comes-next-after-dismantling-voting-rights-act-conversation-ari-berman

https://eji.org/news/supreme-court-undermines-black-political-participation-in-devastating-ruling-on-voting-rights-act/

2026-06-17 Georgia lawmakers reversed a decision to gerrymander after civil rights activists pushed against the effort to disenfranchise Black voters.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VeKoi2ZqL94&list=WL&index=8

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/georgia-republican-legislative-leaders-reject-governors-call-for-2028-redistricting