Trending Now - Alito's Ruling on Voting Rights Misuses DOJ Data, Critics Say

WHO:

The Guardian - Samuel Alito, a Supreme Court Justice, authored the majority opinion in the case concerning Louisiana’s congressional map.

The Guardian - Michael McDonald, a political science professor at the University of Florida, is a leading expert on voter turnout.

The Guardian - Kevin Morris, a researcher at the Brennan Center for Justice, has studied the turnout gap extensively.

The Guardian - Kareem Crayton, a vice-president at the Brennan Center for Justice, commented on the implications of Alito's ruling.

WHAT:

The Guardian - Alito's opinion in a landmark Voting Rights Act case claimed that Black voter turnout exceeded white voter turnout in two of the five most recent presidential elections.

The Guardian - The Justice Department's analysis cited by Alito calculated Black and white voter turnout as a proportion of the total population over the age of 18.

The Guardian - Alito's claim about Black voter turnout in Louisiana was found to be misleading based on the methodology used.

The Guardian - Black voter turnout in Louisiana only exceeded white voter turnout in the 2012 presidential election when using the citizen voting age population method.

The Guardian - The overall national turnout gap has "exploded" over the last 15 years, according to Kevin Morris.

Slate - The Supreme Court's ruling in Louisiana v. Callais has immediate and devastating consequences for Black voting power.

WHERE:

The Guardian - The case primarily concerns Louisiana’s congressional map and voting rights.

Slate - The ruling has implications for Tennessee, where the state carved up its only majority-Black district.

WHEN:

The Guardian - The Supreme Court's decision occurred last week, gutting Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act.

The Guardian - Black voter turnout reached an all-time high in 2012, exceeding that of white voters for the first time since the Voting Rights Act was passed.

WHY:

The Guardian - Alito argued that the kind of discrimination that made the Voting Rights Act necessary no longer exists due to vast social changes.

The Guardian - The Justice Department's methodology was criticized for including ineligible voters in the denominator, which misrepresented turnout statistics.

HOW:

The Guardian - The Justice Department used total voting age population instead of the citizen voting age population to compute turnout figures.

The Guardian - The methodology used by the Justice Department was described as unusual and not preferred by experts in calculating statewide turnout.

(UPDATED May 9, 2026 01:31 UTC)

In a significant ruling, Justice Alito authored the majority opinion in a landmark Voting Rights Act case concerning Louisiana's congressional map, claiming that Black voter turnout exceeded white voter turnout in two of the five most recent presidential elections. However, this assertion has been challenged, as experts noted that Black voter turnout in Louisiana only surpassed white turnout in the 2012 election when using a specific methodology, and the Justice Department's analysis was criticized for its unusual approach. The implications of this ruling extend beyond Louisiana, affecting states like Tennessee, where it has serious consequences for Black voting power.