Frequently Asked Questions about Voting Rights

What kinds of racial discrimination in voting are there, and what does the Voting Rights Act do about them?

The Voting Rights Act is not limited to discrimination that literally excludes voters from the polls based on race. Section 2 of the Act (42 U.S.C. 1973) makes it illegal for any state or local government to use election processes that are not equally open to voters based on race, or that give voters less opportunity than other voters to participate in the political process and elect representatives of their choice to public office based on race.