A prominent voting rights lawyer warned on Thursday that President Donald Trump's Department of Justice is taking a new position in "dozens and dozens" of voting rights cases, and that decision could harm many voters ahead of the 2026 midterms.
Marc Elias, who founded the Elias Law Group, discussed a recent court filing from the DOJ on a new episode of progressive YouTuber Brian Tyler Cohen's show "Democracy Docket." In the filing, the DOJ argued that a test in Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act that has been used to protect district that are predominantly made up of voters of color should be thrown out, Elias said.
"This is a dark day for democracy," Elias said.
"In this blockbuster filing, the DOJ itself has reversed its position," Elias continued. "Not just its position in this case, its position in literally dozens upon dozens of cases where both Democratic and Republican attorneys general and their solicitor generals have defended the Voting Rights Act."
The case concerns Louisiana's voting map, which state lawmakers were required to redraw in 2024 after federal judges found it violated the Voting Rights Act by not having enough majority-minority districts. It is currently being reviewed by the Supreme Court and a decision could be handed down as early as next term.
The DOJ argued that the test used to determine whether Louisiana's map was unconstitutional is illegal itself. Instead of the current test, Elias said the DOJ wants to create a different test that disentangles race and party. He described it as "nonsensical."
"There are places where Black voters vote overwhelmingly for Democratic candidates; you're never going to be able to disentangle race from party," Elias said. "So, what they're basically saying is if the state of Louisiana discriminates against black voters, too bad, unless those black voters can show that they can pass a map that will still favor Republicans while vindicating the right of black voters. It's nonsensical."
