Congress Restores VRA Section 2 Results Test After Mobile v. Bolden

Congress passed a bipartisan amendment to the Voting Rights Act restoring the "results test" for Section 2 claims, overturning the intent standard the Supreme Court had imposed in Mobile v. Bolden two years earlier. The Senate passed the amendment 85-8 and the House 389-24, sending an unambiguous message that Congress intended Section 2 to reach voting practices with discriminatory effects, not just those proven to have discriminatory purpose. President Reagan signed the bill despite personal reservations about the results standard, under pressure from Senate Republicans including Robert Dole.