The Voting Rights Act's impact on Black representation in local government

When the Voting Rights Act was signed into law in 1965, it didn't just enfranchise Black voters in the American South. It also led to greater representation of Black lawmakers in local government, according to a new paper published in the April 2023 issue of the Journal of Political Economy. In "Race, Representation, and Local Governments in the US South: The Effect of the Voting Rights Act," authors Andrea Bernini, Giovanni Facchini, and Cecilia Testa analyze how the law promoted the election of Black politicians to county commissions and other offices in the immediate years after it was passed.