A New Frontier for Voting Rights: Private Plaintiffs’ Rights of Action Under § 2 of the Voting Rights Act Following Arkansas NAACP

On November 20, 2023, in Arkansas State Conference NAACP v. Arkansas Board of Apportionment, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit held that the private plaintiffs-appellants lacked both a right of action and a remedy under § 2 of the Voting Rights Act (“VRA”). This Comment argues that the Eighth Circuit misapplied authorities ranging from Supreme Court precedent to the VRA’s text, structure, and legislative history—all of which acknowledge private litigants’ ability to enforce the VRA. This Comment recognizes, however, that the ruling is not fatal to private litigants’ § 2 claims because 42 U.S.C. § 1983 likely provides for private enforcement.