Justice Kagan Criticizes Court's Conservative Majority Over Voting, Districting and Campaign Finance Rulings

Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan, a member of the court's liberal wing, said Tuesday that the conservative majority has undermined democracy through rulings on voting rights, partisan gerrymandering and campaign finance. Speaking at Catholic University's law school in Washington, D.C., she said the court showed a lack of concern for or understanding of the consequences of its decisions and has created a democracy that does not work as well as it should. She said the rulings have produced a "race to the bottom" in how congressional districts are drawn.

Kagan pointed to a 2019 ruling that barred federal courts from limiting extreme partisan gerrymandering, rulings that gutted the 1965 Voting Rights Act, including one this year that led Republican states to eliminate majority Black districts, and decisions striking down campaign finance limits, most recently in June. She dissented in those cases. Several states have redrawn congressional maps ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm elections.

Right-leaning outlets had not reported this story at the time of writing, while left-leaning and alternative outlets had. The New York Times framed the remarks as a comment on polarization before the midterms. NBC News led with her accusation of undermining democracy and detailed the rulings and map-drawing. Reuters, the alternative source here, stressed her "destructive to democracy" and "race to the bottom" language.