US Laws, Codes, Statutes & Cases

From the U.S. Code Online via GPO Access
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[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
  January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 42USC1973]

 
                 TITLE 42--THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE
 
                     CHAPTER 20--ELECTIVE FRANCHISE
 
              SUBCHAPTER I-A--ENFORCEMENT OF VOTING RIGHTS
 
Sec. 1973. Denial or abridgement of right to vote on account of 
        race or color through voting qualifications or prerequisites; 
        establishment of violation
        
    (a) No voting qualification or prerequisite to voting or standard, 
practice, or procedure shall be imposed or applied by any State or 
political subdivision in a manner which results in a denial or 
abridgement of the right of any citizen of the United States to vote on 
account of race or color, or in contravention of the guarantees set 
forth in section 1973b(f)(2) of this title, as provided in subsection 
(b) of this section.
    (b) A violation of subsection (a) of this section is established if, 
based on the totality of circumstances, it is shown that the political 
processes leading to nomination or election in the State or political 
subdivision are not equally open to participation by members of a class 
of citizens protected by subsection (a) of this section in that its 
members have less opportunity than other members of the electorate to 
participate in the political process and to elect representatives of 
their choice. The extent to which members of a protected class have been 
elected to office in the State or political subdivision is one 
circumstance which may be considered: Provided, That nothing in this 
section establishes a right to have members of a protected class elected 
in numbers equal to their proportion in the population.

(Pub. L. 89-110, title I, Sec. 2, Aug. 6, 1965, 79 Stat. 437; renumbered 
title I, Pub. L. 91-285, Sec. 2, June 22, 1970, 84 Stat. 314; amended 
Pub. L. 94-73, title II, Sec. 206, Aug. 6, 1975, 89 Stat. 402; Pub. L. 
97-205, Sec. 3, June 29, 1982, 96 Stat. 134.)


                               Amendments

    1982--Pub. L. 97-205 redesignated existing provisions as subsec. 
(a), struck out the comma after ``voting'', substituted ``in a manner 
which results in a denial or abridgement of'' for ``to deny or 
abridge'', inserted ``, as provided in subsection (b) of this section'' 
after ``in contravention of the guarantees set forth in section 
1973b(f)(2) of this title'', and added subsec. (b).
    1975--Pub. L. 94-73 substituted ``race or color, or in contravention 
of the guarantees set forth in section 1973b(f)(2) of this title'' for 
``race or color''.


                    Effective Date of 1982 Amendment

    Section 6 of Pub. L. 97-205 provided that: ``Except as otherwise 
provided in this Act, the amendments made by this Act [see Short Title 
of 1982 Amendment note below] shall take effect on the date of the 
enactment of this Act [June 29, 1982].''


                               Short Title

    This subchapter and subchapters I-B and I-C of this chapter known as 
the ``Voting Rights Act of 1965'', see Short Title note set out under 
section 1971 of this title.


                              Separability

    Section 208 of Pub. L. 94-73 provided that: ``If any amendments made 
by this Act [enacting sections 1973aa-1a and 1973aa-5 of this title, 
amending this section and sections 1973a to 1973d, 1973h, 1973i, 1973k, 
1973l, 1973aa, 1973aa-2, 1973aa-3, 1973bb, 1973bb-1 of this title, and 
repealing sections 1973bb-2 to 1973bb-4 of this title] or the 
application of any provision thereof to any person or circumstance is 
judicially determined to be invalid, the remainder of the Voting Rights 
Act of 1965 [this subchapter and subchapters I-B and I-C of this 
chapter], or the application of such provision to other persons or 
circumstances shall not be affected by such determination.''

                  Section Referred to in Other Sections

    This section is referred to in section 1973j of this title.