The dismantling of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 by the Supreme Court and conservative state elected officials may be a major reason behind Donald Trump's 2016 U.S. presidential election win, reports ThinkProgress. This was the nation’s first presidential election since the Voting Rights Act's implementation 50 years ago in which the act didn’t provide full protection to voters of color.
Florida, North Carolina, and Wisconsin put Donald Trump over the electoral vote threshold to win the election. All three of these states elected conservative governors over the course of Barack Obama’s presidency, and each of those governors put in place voting restrictions deemed lawful because of the Supreme Court’s 2013 ruling.
In 2008, Obama won the electoral votes of all three states. In 2012, he lost North Carolina, and in 2016 Hillary Clinton lost all three, costing her the election.
“This year,” reports ThinkProgress, “the GOP expanded its control to 32 state legislatures and 33 governorships.”
ThinkProgress continued:
“With all three branches of the federal government and a majority of states now under Republican control, American voters can expect to face more barriers and restrictions in the coming years.”
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