Op-ed: They’re coming for your right to vote. We’re not going to let them have it.
By Janet Murguía and Tom Lopach
Georgia voters are about to pay the price for the state’s recent push for a special redistricting session.
Emboldened by the Supreme Court’s decision in Louisiana v. Callais – which weakens protections for minority voters – Georgia lawmakers are formulating a plan to redraw congressional maps that could push out Black lawmakers and dilute the voices of Black voters across the state.
Writing for the majority in Callais, Justice Samuel Alito declared that “the racial gap in voter registration and turnout has largely disappeared.”
The millions of eligible voters our organizations represent know this is not true. Racial disparities in political participation remain deep, persistent, and consequential. And Black voters will not be the only ones impacted.
People of color, young people, women and economically disadvantaged Americans across the country should take note: What is happening in Georgia could become a model for other states to follow.
We’re already seeing efforts to further diminish Latino representation. For example, last summer, Texas redrew its congressional map to splinter Latino communities across new districts, diluting their voting power in a state with some of the most draconian voter access laws. The Supreme Court’s latest decision now makes that map permanent.
Under Callais, the gutting of Latino representation will likely accelerate – and become nearly impossible to reverse. In the U.S., there are 36 million eligible Latino voters. They are decisive in every major swing state. Nearly one million more turn 18 each year – yet almost half remain unregistered.Callaiscould deepen these gaps, making it easier for lawmakers to weaken districts where Latino voters comprise the majority.
The Supreme Court’s decision is another step in a coordinated attack to limit who gets to vote in our country. President Donald Trump has repeatedly pressured Congress to pass the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, which would eliminate the online and mail registration methods 83% of voters relied on in the 2023-2024 cycle. Twenty-three states, including Georgia, have already codified proof-of-citizenship requirements, narrowing ID laws, curtailing vote-by-mail, and purging voter rolls.
At the same time, the Trump administration has sued 29 states, demanding unredacted voter rolls with private and personal information. They’ve dismantled key federal election security infrastructure – firing national security and cybersecurity officials who tracked threats from foreign interference – and repeatedly attempted to interfere in state election administration.
The barriers to full voter participation are already steep. These actions make them steeper. Today, people of color, young voters, and unmarried women make up 64% of the voting-eligible population, but account for more than 70% of eligible Americans who are not registered.
More voters than ever are casting ballots, however. In 2025, voting saw a 25-year high for off-year election turnout. Voters who have never engaged before are registering. Voters who stepped back are returning.
Of course, voting power is the engine that drives our elections. Securing a fair and free election requires infrastructure – the unglamorous but essential work that happens long before anyone steps into a polling booth.