Shutterstock
Audio By Carbonatix
On Thursday, a Supreme Court decision on voting rights in Arizona sent shockwaves through Texas.
In a 6-3 vote, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld two Arizona laws that critics say will make it more difficult for minorities to vote. Now, Democrats and voting rights advocates are sounding the alarm in Texas.
Republican politicians nationwide continue to push laws that they argue will prevent widespread voter fraud. But Democrats and other critics insist conservative lawmakers have an ulterior motive: to disenfranchise minority voters.
During the 87th Legislature, Texas Democrats effectively blocked the passage of Senate Bill 7, which would have imposed sweeping voting restrictions. But a special session is set to begin next week, and Republican Gov. Greg Abbott has made it clear he wants the bill revived.
“I think the [Supreme Court’s] ruling emboldens state legislators to enact more restrictive voting laws, specifically laws that could target people of color,” said Wesley Story, the communications manager at the progressive nonprofit organization Progress Texas.
The court’s ruling comes at a time when Democrats in Congress have struggled to move the needle on the For the People Act, which would reverse some of the new restrictions imposed by states. Last week, Senate Republicans blocked debate on the sweeping bill.
One of the Arizona laws limited the way absentee ballots can be collected, while the other effectively discarded ballots cast in the wrong precinct. In Texas, SB 7 would limit early voting hours and make it harder to vote by mail, among other restrictions.
The American Civil Liberties Union condemned the high court’s decision, writing “it will now be extremely difficult to challenge similarly racist voting restrictions in court at a time when states have introduced hundreds of them across the country.”
Democratic Texas lawmakers and organizations also decried the ruling on social media. Shortly after the news broke, Dallas state Rep. Jessica González took to Twitter, calling on the U.S. Senate to safeguard voting rights.
“SCOTUS proved that it’s not above partisanship and backs legislative assaults on our democracy,” she wrote.
Now more than ever before, TX & AZ & GA & NC need Senate to end filibuster to pass #ForThePeopleAct and #JohnLewisVotingRightsAct. SCOTUS proved that it’s not above partisanship and backs legislative assaults on our democracy. #txlege ?@SenSchumer? https://t.co/P52UXB6N3y
— Jessica González (@jessicafortexas) July 1, 2021
“The ruling emboldens state legislators to enact more restrictive voting laws, specifically laws that could target people of color.” – Wesley Story, Progress Texas
The Lone Star Project, a liberal political action committee, also rebuked the court, writing Abbott and the Republican leadership will “almost certainly” push more voting legislation.
“Expect Greg Abbott, [Lt. Gov.] Dan Patrick and [Texas House Speaker] Dade Phelan to run through any legal roadblocks in their virulent efforts to hold power by undermining basic voting rights,” the group wrote in a statement. “Discriminatory vote suppression is hardwired into their very nature.”
Today's SCOTUS ruling is another signal to Congress and President Biden to adopt both the For the People Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Restoration Act.
Nothing is more important to the preservation of freedom and democracy in our nation. #txlege pic.twitter.com/sl3GO99eBZ
— Lone Star Project (@lsptex) July 1, 2021
Democrats are gearing up for a voting-rights redux at the state Capitol starting Thursday. Aside from SB 7, Abbott expects lawmakers to further limit the teaching of critical race theory. He’s also calling for legislation that would prohibit social media companies from “censoring” Texans for their political views.
Story believes Abbott’s legislative priorities are misguided.
“This special session did not have to happen,” he said, “and if it was going to happen, there are so many other things that it could have been focused on.”
The energy grid is still having issues, Story said, and many Texans still need financial help because the pandemic caused them to lose work. Texas is also undergoing a health care crisis, he added. Despite being the most uninsured state in the nation, lawmakers neglected to pass legislation aimed at Medicaid expansion.
Abbott is “wasting time” trying to restrict the right to vote, and since special sessions cost money, he’s spending taxpayer dollars to do it, Story said. Plus, the governor is trying to coerce lawmakers into passing certain bills by withholding their pay.
Last month, Abbott effectively defunded the state Legislature after Democrats staged a May 30 walkout in a last-ditch effort to block SB 7. In response, Texas Democrats filed a lawsuit, calling the punitive move unconstitutional.
“What [Abbott’s] doing is wrong,” Story said, “and I think any reasonable person can see that.”
