Racial disparities in voter turnout have grown since Supreme Court ruling, study says

Voters cast their ballots in North Charleston, S.C., on Oct. 16, 2020. A new study says the turnout gap between white and nonwhite voters in the U.S. is growing fastest in jurisdictions that were stripped of a federal voting protection by a Supreme Court decision. (Logan Cyrus/AFP via Getty Images)

The turnout gap between white and nonwhite voters in the U.S. is growing fastest in jurisdictions that were stripped of a federal civil rights-era voting protection a decade ago, according to a new study.

The protections in Section 5 of the 1965 Voting Rights Act required some states and localities with a history of voting discrimination to obtain federal approval before they could make any changes to their voting laws or procedures.