A divided Supreme Court on Tuesday invalidated a crucial component of the landmark Voting Rights Act of 1965, ruling that Congress has not taken into account the nation's racial progress when singling out certain states for federal oversight.
The vote was 5 to 4, with Chief Justice John Roberts and the other conservative members of the court in the majority.
The court did not strike down the law itself or the provision that calls for special scrutiny of states with a history of discrimination, but it said Congress must come up with a new formula based on current data to determine which states should be subject to the requirements.