According to
The Nation, 3 senators will introduce new legislation on Thursday, January 16, that would update the Voting Rights Act (VRA) with a new formula to determine when preclearance is needed. Preclearance requires certain states or electoral districts to get approval for the U.S. Department of Justice before implementing any new changes to election laws. The formula to determine the need for preclearance, however, was ruled outdated and struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court in the 2013 case, Shelby County v. Holder.
The high court did not rule on the constitutionality of preclearance itself, which is found in Section 5 of the VRA, but its decision left the bill broken and as polarized as the 113th Congress has been, very few people thought a new formula would emerge in the immediate future. This means states are free to pass whatever election laws they want and the only way to challenge the constitutionality of a new law is in court, which can be an extremely lengthy -- not to mention costly -- process. The issue has since been forgotten or cast aside by major news outlets and politicians -- until now.
U.S. Representatives Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.) and John Conyers (D-Mich.), along with Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) will introduce "The Voting Rights Amendment Act of 2014" to strengthen the VRA and implement a new formula to determine preclearance, which proponents say is necessary to protect voting rights for all citizens.
The Nation breaks down 5 ways the "The Voting Rights Amendment Act of 2014" strengthens the VRA:
Section 3 of the VRAsecret weaponNorth Carolina’s voting lawtwenty-five states
Obviously, the bill is going to be met with serious opposition in Congress, but it may not just come from those who supported the Supreme Court's decision. There will likely be some who say the bill does not go far enough, that it doesn't cover enough states, and will object to the fact that it treats voter ID differently than other discriminatory laws.
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