美国最高法院释放“一人一票”

Supreme¹ Court Helps Define ‘One Person, One Vote’ 美国最高法院释放“一人一票”

“One person, one vote” is a guiding principle of American democracy. But its exact meaning continues to be debated.

The U.S. Supreme Court recently decided² one dispute.

In April, the court ruled that states can count all residents to set up election districts and not just those allowed to vote.

The issue is important because it decides how many seats in Congress and legislatures are given states and local communities.

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg wrote the decision. In her ruling, she provided a history lesson.

In 1776, when the U.S. declared independence from Great Britain, only people who owned property could vote. It was not until 1920 that women won the right to vote.

Slaves were not permitted to vote. It took the Voting Rights Act of 1964 to end rules that stopped African-Americans from voting in some southern states.

In 2016, children under 18 still cannot vote. Nor can prisoners.

But in her ruling, Ginsburg wrote the nation’s founders³ believed everyone --- whether they voted or not – should be represented by their government. She said all people need government services.

“Representatives serve all residents, not just those eligible⁴ to vote,” Ginsburg wrote.

Michael Li works on voting rights issues for the Brennan Center for Democracy in New York. He said the Supreme Court ruling is important.

“We fought a revolution over taxation⁵ without representation and early on in our history we decided that people should be represented the same way, whether they vote or can’t vote,” Li said.

He said the Supreme Court ruling will help undocumented immigrants because they will continue to get counted, even if they cannot vote.

Two Supreme Court Justices – Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito -- also voted with Ginsburg in the 8-0 ruling. But they said the ruling should have limited effects.

Thomas and Alito said the ruling means the states can draw election districts based on all residents -- not just voters. The ruling does not mean the states must do this.

“The Constitution leaves the choice to the people alone – not to this court,” Thomas wrote.

Currently, all 50 states use U.S. Census⁶ Bureau data to determine representation. That includes all those counted – both voters and non-voters.

History of “one person, one vote”

American history is full of fights about how to define “one person, one vote.”

In 1787, there was a dispute between the northern states, where slavery was illegal, and southern states, where slavery was permitted.

In the North, people argued states that deny African-Americans the right to vote – and all other freedoms – should not count them for representation in Congress.

As a compromise, a slave was counted as 3/5 of a person. With the end of slavery in 1865 after the Civil War, the rule ended.

In 1964, the Supreme Court ruled that states must create legislative⁷ districts based on equal representation. At the time, some big cities, such as Los Angeles, were given the same representation in state legislatures as small communities.

There are other voting issues that likely will make their way through the courts. One is whether requiring voters to show picture identification violates the Constitution’s equal protection guarantee.

Supporters say requiring identification reduces fraud. But opponents say fraud is not a problem. They say the requirement will make it hard for minorities and older people without identification to vote.

Therefore, these opponents say, requiring picture identification violates the principle of “one person, one vote.”

Words in This Story

principle – n. a moral rule or belief that helps you know what is right and wrong and that influences your actions

residents – n. people who live in a community

eligible – v. able to do or receive something

revolution - n. the usually violent attempt by many people to end the rule of one government and start a new one

lesson - n. something learned through experience; something that is taught

fraud - n. cheating; using dishonest methods to make something value from another person

1 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

2 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

3 founders   

n.创始人( founder的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He was one of the founders of the university's medical faculty. 他是该大学医学院的创建人之一。 来自辞典例句
• The founders of our religion made this a cornerstone of morality. 我们宗教的创始人把这看作是道德的基石。 来自辞典例句

4 eligible   

adj.有条件被选中的；(尤指婚姻等)合适(意)的

参考例句：

• He is an eligible young man.他是一个合格的年轻人。
• Helen married an eligible bachelor.海伦嫁给了一个中意的单身汉。

5 taxation   

n.征税，税收，税金

参考例句：

• He made a number of simplifications in the taxation system.他在税制上作了一些简化。
• The increase of taxation is an important fiscal policy.增税是一项重要的财政政策。

6 census   

n.(官方的)人口调查，人口普查

参考例句：

• A census of population is taken every ten years.人口普查每10年进行一次。
• The census is taken one time every four years in our country.我国每四年一次人口普查。

7 legislative   

n.立法机构，立法权；adj.立法的，有立法权的

参考例句：

• Congress is the legislative branch of the U.S. government.国会是美国政府的立法部门。
• Today's hearing was just the first step in the legislative process.今天的听证会只是展开立法程序的第一步。