Cite as: 517 U. S. 186 (1996)
Thomas, J., dissenting
division of a State nor a governmental unit acting on behalf of any such territory.
Undoubtedly, Sheffield speaks in broad terms when it states that § 5 "applies to all entities having power over any aspect of the electoral process within designated jurisdictions, not only to counties or to whatever units of state government perform the function of registering voters." 435 U. S., at 118 (quoted ante, at 204, 220). That language must be viewed in the context of the case, however. The holding of Sheffield applies only to governmental bodies within a State—i. e., cities, counties, or municipalities, and their agencies—not to private groups with a partisan, or "political," agenda. See, e. g., Sheffield, 435 U. S., at 117 ("We first consider whether Congress intended to exclude from § 5 coverage political units, like Sheffield, which have never conducted voter registration"); id., at 124 ("Congress could not have intended § 5's duties to apply only to those cities that register voters"); ibid. ("local political entities like Sheffield" can impair minority votes in ways other than registration) (all emphases added). In the legislative history Sheffield cites as support for its holding that "political units" are covered regardless of whether they register voters, every entity mentioned is a governmental one. See id., at 133-134 (cities; school districts; city councils; precincts; county districts; and municipalities). There is no basis in Sheffield and its progeny for covering nongovernmental entities under § 5.
Nonetheless, there is a critical similarity between this case and Sheffield. Just as in Sheffield, a majority of the Court has inflated the phrase "State or political subdivision" to implausible proportions. The dissent in Sheffield warned that "the logistical and administrative problems inherent in reviewing all voting changes of all political units strongly suggest that Congress placed limits on the preclearance requirement." Id., at 147 (Stevens, J., dissenting). Today, the Justices that support the judgment go much further and re-
261
Page: Index Previous 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 NextLast modified: October 4, 2007