IN what President Barack Obama has branded a civil rights setback, the US Supreme Court has struck down a key part of a federal law safeguarding the voting rights of blacks and other minorities.
By a 5-4 decision, the court on Tuesday upheld the core principle of the Voting Rights Act - that any electoral changes in mainly southern states with a track record of voting discrimination must be "precleared" or approved by Washington.
But it cast the entire law into limbo by stating section four of the law - which lays out a formula for determining which of the 50 states should be subject to its provisions - is outdated and needs a rewrite by Congress.
"Our decision in no way affects the permanent, nationwide ban on racial discrimination in voting," Chief Justice John Roberts argued, writing in the majority opinion issued with the verdict.
"Section 4 of the Voting Rights Act is unconstitutional. Its formula can no longer be used as a basis for subjecting jurisdictions to preclearance.
"Coverage today is based on decades-old data and eradicated practices. Today the nation is no longer divided (as it was in 1965) ... yet the Voting Rights Act continues to treat is as if it were."
Tossing a political hot potato across the street to the Capitol, Roberts said it fell upon Congress to decide whether to draft another section-four formula "based on current conditions".
With the Republicans in control of the House of Representatives, political analysts say the prospects for any such revision in the near future are practically nil.
Obama was "deeply disappointed" by a ruling that, he said, "upsets decades of well-established practices that help make sure voting is fair, especially in places where voting discrimination has been historically prevalent".
"While today's decision is a setback, it doesn't represent the end of our efforts to end voting discrimination. I am calling on Congress to pass legislation to ensure every American has equal access to the polls," he said.
Overwhelmingly renewed by Congress in 2006, the Voting Rights Act requires nine states, plus a batch of local-level governments in seven states, to seek Justice Department approval when altering their electoral laws.
The nine states are Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas and Virginia, while the local governments are in states as diverse as California, Florida, Michigan and New York.
Americans have been split on the Voting Rights Act for some time, with one recent CNN poll indicating 50 per cent think it is no longer needed and 48 per cent in favour of keeping it.
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