Reports Say Data Alito Cited to Curb Voting Rights Act Was Misleading
Experts say the Justice Department’s brief counted the over‑18 population, including ineligible people, which distorted racial turnout comparisons.
Overview
- New reporting says Justice Samuel Alito’s opinion curbing Section 2 echoed a Justice Department brief that claimed Black turnout topped white turnout in two recent presidential races in Louisiana and nationwide.
- Analysts say the brief measured turnout as a share of each group’s total adult population using the Census Current Population Survey, which includes non‑citizens and others who cannot vote.
- The Guardian’s re‑analysis using citizen voting‑age population found Black turnout in Louisiana exceeded white turnout only in 2012, contradicting the brief’s two‑election claim.
- Louisiana secretary of state data that track turnout as a share of registered voters show Black turnout did not exceed white turnout in any of the last five presidential elections in the state.
- Turnout experts Michael McDonald, Kevin Morris, and Christopher Warshaw criticized the brief’s method as misleading and cherry‑picked, warning the Court’s reliance on it understates persistent gaps with implications for future Voting Rights Act cases.