The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday voted, 6-2, to uphold Michigan's ban on state affirmative action programs, finding that the court has no authority to set aside the measure approved by voters.
Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote the main opinion for a fractured court. In announcing the ruling, Kennedy said the decision is "not about the constitutionality or merits" of affirmative action generally. Read the court's opinion here.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor read from her dissent, which was joined by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. In her 58-page dissent, Sotomayor said the court "eviscerates" a key equal-protection guarantee that government should not make it harder for minorities to participate in self-government. Justice Elena Kagan recused in the case, probably because she was involved in the litigation at earlier stages as solicitor general at the U.S. Department of Justice.