Voting Rights Act of 1965
E8555
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 is a landmark U.S. federal law that outlawed discriminatory voting practices and enforced African Americans’ right to vote, especially in the South.
Observed surface forms (10)
Statements (56)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
United States federal statute
ⓘ
civil rights legislation ⓘ |
| abbreviation | VRA ⓘ |
| affectedByCourtDecision |
Shelby County v. Holder
ⓘ
surface form:
Shelby County v. Holder (2013)
|
| amendedBy |
Voting Rights Act Amendments of 1970
ⓘ
Voting Rights Act Amendments of 1975 ⓘ Voting Rights Act Amendments of 1982 ⓘ Voting Rights Act Reauthorization and Amendments Act of 2006 ⓘ |
| authorizes |
appointment of federal examiners to register voters
ⓘ
appointment of federal observers to monitor elections ⓘ federal oversight of elections in certain jurisdictions ⓘ federal oversight of voter registration ⓘ |
| codifiedAt | 52 U.S.C. §§ 10301–10702 ⓘ |
| constitutionalBasis |
Fifteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution
ⓘ
Fourteenth Amendment ⓘ
surface form:
Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution
|
| containsSection |
Section 2
ⓘ
Section 203 ⓘ Section 4 ⓘ Section 4(b) ⓘ Section 5 ⓘ |
| country |
United States of America
ⓘ
surface form:
United States
|
| effectiveDate | 1965-08-06 ⓘ |
| enactedBy | 89th United States Congress ⓘ |
| extendedBy |
Voting Rights Act Amendments of 1970
ⓘ
Voting Rights Act Amendments of 1975 ⓘ Voting Rights Act Amendments of 1982 ⓘ Voting Rights Act Reauthorization and Amendments Act of 2006 ⓘ |
| historicalContext | enacted during the Civil Rights Era ⓘ |
| inspiredBy |
American civil rights movement
ⓘ
surface form:
Civil Rights Movement
|
| introducedInChamber | United States Senate ⓘ |
| landmarkCase |
Brnovich v. Democratic National Committee
ⓘ
Shelby County v. Holder ⓘ South Carolina v. Katzenbach ⓘ |
| legislativeStatus | amended and partially invalidated by Supreme Court decisions ⓘ |
| notableImpact |
dramatic increase in African American voter registration in the South
ⓘ
increase in the number of African American elected officials ⓘ |
| precededBy | Civil Rights Act of 1964 ⓘ |
| primaryPurpose |
to enforce the Fifteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution
ⓘ
to prohibit racial discrimination in voting ⓘ |
| prohibits |
discriminatory voting practices based on race or color
ⓘ
literacy tests for voting in certain jurisdictions ⓘ |
| publicLawNumber | Pub.L. 89–110 ⓘ |
| recognizedAs | one of the most effective pieces of civil rights legislation in U.S. history ⓘ |
| relatedTo |
Civil Rights Act of 1964
ⓘ
Fifteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution ⓘ 24th Amendment to the United States Constitution ⓘ
surface form:
Twenty-Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution
|
| section203Provides | language assistance for certain language minority groups in voting ⓘ |
| section2Provides | a nationwide ban on voting practices that discriminate on the basis of race or color ⓘ |
| section4bProvides | coverage formula determining which jurisdictions are subject to preclearance ⓘ |
| section5Provides | a preclearance requirement for certain jurisdictions before changing voting laws ⓘ |
| shelbyCountyEffect | invalidated Section 4(b) coverage formula and effectively halted Section 5 preclearance ⓘ |
| shortName |
Voting Rights Act of 1965
self-linksurface differs
ⓘ
surface form:
Voting Rights Act
|
| signedBy | Lyndon B. Johnson ⓘ |
| signingDate | 1965-08-06 ⓘ |
| targets | states and localities with a history of racial discrimination in voting ⓘ |
| title | An Act to enforce the fifteenth amendment to the Constitution of the United States, and for other purposes ⓘ |
Referenced by (72)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.
this entity surface form:
Voting Rights Act
this entity surface form:
Voting Rights Act of 1965 as amended
this entity surface form:
federal Voting Rights Act of 1965