The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday limited the scope of the Voting Right Act.

By a 5 to 4 vote split along conservative-liberal lines, the justices said the law does not require governments to create voting districts in which minorities make up less than a majority of the population. The decision is the first time the court has backed a percentage limit to the protections of the Voting Rights Act.

"The decision turns 50 percent into a magic number," Richard L. Hasen, a professor at Loyola Law School in California, told The New York Times.

None of the opinions from the justices appear to mention Indian voting rights. Recent cases from South Dakota and Montana have involved voting districts where Indians make up 50 percent or more of the population.

Get the Story:
Supreme Court Restricts Voting Rights Act's Scope (The Washington Post 3/10)
Justices, 5-4, Set Limit on Sweep of Voting Law (The New York Times 3/10)

Bartlett v. Strickland:
Syllabus | Opinion [Kennedy] | Concurrence [Thomas] | Dissent [Souter] | Dissent [Ginsburg] | Dissent [Breyer]