Justice Kagan warns Supreme Court rulings fuel polarization

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 21 Oct, 03:32 · Archive

Justice Elena Kagan says conservative Supreme Court rulings on voting and campaign finance have increased political polarization and weakened democracy.

Justice Elena Kagan said on Tuesday that voting and election decisions from her conservative Supreme Court colleagues have made the country more politically polarised and less democratic. Speaking at Catholic University's law school in Washington, D.C., two weeks before the pivotal midterm elections for control of Congress, the liberal-leaning justice sharply criticised how the majority's rulings have affected the nation's political environment.

She criticised rulings that weakened the Voting Rights Act and campaign finance regulations whilst opening the door for more partisan gerrymandering. 'The court has kind of blinded itself to the very deleterious effect of their rulings on how the political system works and has created a democracy that does not work as well as it should,' she said. She dissented from those decisions.

Kagan said that both major political parties have been engaged in partisan gerrymandering over the last couple of years, making 'an unfortunately too polarised country even more so'. In a 2019 ruling, the court's conservative majority said courts drawing voting districts for maximum advantage is a political dispute and federal courts cannot intervene. Conservatives have separately ruled that key campaign finance regulations violate freedom of speech. This year, the court narrowed protections in the Voting Rights Act, which had helped increase minority representation.

How it is being reported

• Justice Kagan warns Supreme Court rulings are fueling polarization and undermining democracyJustice Elena Kagan says decisions by her conservative Supreme Court colleagues have increased political polarization and weakened democracy in the U.S. She spoke Tuesday, two weeks before the midterm elections, criticizing rulings that weakened the Voting Rights Act and campaign finance regulations.Clickorlando · 21 Oct, 02:48
• Justice Kagan warns Supreme Court rulings are fueling polarization and undermining democracyJustice Elena Kagan says decisions by her conservative Supreme Court colleagues have increased political polarization and weakened democracy in the U.S. She spoke Tuesday, two weeks before the midterm elections, criticizing rulings that weakened the Voting Rights Act and campaign finance regulations.News4Jax · 21 Oct, 02:48

In this story: Elena Kagan · Supreme Court · United States · Catholic University · Congress · Donald Trump

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