Joshua A. Douglas of University of Kentucky, J. David Rosenberg College of Law has authored The Court v. The Voters: The Troubling Story of How the Supreme Court Has Undermined Voting Rights, a book exploring the effect of several Supreme Court cases on voting rights.
From the book’s description:
An urgent and gripping look at the erosion of voting rights and its implications for democracy, told through the stories of 9 Supreme Court decisions—and the next looming case
In The Court v. The Voters, law professor Joshua Douglas takes us behind the scenes of significant cases in voting rights—some surprising and unknown, some familiar—to investigate the historic crossroads that have irrevocably changed our elections and the nation. In crisp and accessible prose, Douglas tells the story of each case, sheds light on the intractable election problems we face as a result, and highlights the unique role the highest court has played in producing a broken electoral system.
Douglas charts infamous cases like:
- Bush v. Gore, which opened the door to many election law claims
- Citizens United, which contributed to skewed representation—but perhaps not in the way you might think
- Shelby County v. Holder, which gutted the vital protections of the Voting Rights Act
- Crawford v. Marion County Elections Board, which allowed states to enforce voter ID laws and make it harder for people to vote
The Court v. The Voters powerfully reminds us of the tangible, real-world effects from the Court’s voting rights decisions. While we can—and should—lament the democracy that might have been, Douglas argues that we can—and should—double down in our efforts to protect the right to vote.
Douglas is the Ashland, Inc-Spears Distinguished Research Professor of Law at the J. David Rosenberg College of Law where he teaches in the areas of election law and voting rights, civil procedure, constitutional law, and judicial decision making. He has recently started Democracy Optimist, a public radio series and podcast that looks democratic processes, elections, and voting rights.
The Court v. The Voters will be released on May 14.