*1044 A history of discrimination is important evidence of both discriminatory intent and discriminatory results. A history of pervasive purposeful discrimination may provide strong circumstantial evidence that the present-day acts of elected officials are motivated by the same purpose, or by a desire to perpetuate the effects of that discrimination. Rogers v. Lodge, 458 U.S. at 624, 102 S.Ct. at 3279. Under the results test, the inquiry is more direct: past discrimination can severely impair the present-day ability of minorities to participate on an equal footing in the political process. Past discrimination may cause blacks to register or vote in lower numbers than whites. Past discrimination may also lead to present socioeconomic disadvantages, which in turn can reduce participation and influence in political affairs. See Zimmer, 485 F.2d at 1306.
No formula for aggregating the factors applies in every case. Some authorities suggest that a finding of discriminatory result is compelled when the plaintiffs show racially polarized voting combined with an absence of minority elected officials. See NAACP v. Gadsden County, 691 F.2d at 982–83; Note, The Constitutional Significance of the Discriminatory Effects of At-Large Elections, 91 Yale L.J. 974, 998 (1982). Others have argued that discriminatory effect is irrebuttably established when these factors are combined with a history of discrimination and present socioeconomic disparities between races. See Blacks United For Lasting Leadership, Inc. v. City of Shreveport, 5th Cir.1978, 571 F.2d 248, 257, (Wisdom, J., dissenting); Hartman, [Racial Vote Dilution and Separation of Powers: An Explanation of the Conflict Between the Judicial “Intent” and the Legislative “Results” Standards ] 50 Geo.Wash.L.Rev. [689,] 729–32 [ (1982) ]. Certainly, when the plaintiffs established these factors and no others weigh strongly against the plaintiffs' case, dilution must be found.
The amendment to the language of Section 2 is designed to make clear that plaintiffs need not prove discriminatory purpose in the adoption or maintenance of the challenged system or practice in order to establish a violation. Plaintiffs must either prove such intent, or alternatively, must show that the challenged system or practice, in the context of all the circumstances in the jurisdiction in question, results in minorities being denied equal access to the political process.
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