The Republican-appointed majority on the Supreme Court has made it harder for Americans to vote and easier for politicians to try to suppress the vote. In 2013, the five Republican-appointed justices voted to end a key provision of the Voting Rights Act, functionally giving states the green light to target communities of color for voter suppression. States took advantage of that ruling to institute voter ID laws, kick people off of voter registration lists, and shut down polling places, making it harder to vote, especially for people of color.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the five Republican-appointed justices ruled to make it harder – and more dangerous – for people to vote. Despite the fact that many Wisconsinites had not received the absentee ballots they had requested long before the election, these justices ruled that people could not submit their ballots after they arrived – forcing thousands of people to choose between staying safe during the pandemic and exercising their right to vote.

While they have cut back on voting rights for ordinary citizens, the six Republican-appointed justices on the Supreme Court have consistently ruled to give corporations and the wealthy more power to buy elections. In cases such as Citizens United, the Supreme Court has eliminated bipartisan legislation that limited spending on elections and barred corporations from trying to buy elections.

In 2019, the five Republican-appointed justices banded together to rule that courts could not do anything to stop partisan gerrymandering. In effect, the Court’s decision was a huge win for partisan interests, allowing politicians to insulate themselves by choosing their voters instead of the other way around.