Jan. 6 Participant Helped Gut Voting Rights Act, Records Show

The Supreme Court’s decision last week to significantly weaken the Voting Rights Act was driven by a plaintiff with a history of election conspiracy theories and ties to the January 6, 2021, Capitol insurrection. According to Democracy Docket, Phillip “Bert” Callais, the lead plaintiff in Louisiana v. Callais, has repeatedly claimed that U.S. elections are rigged.

Callais’s online presence reveals a pattern of right-wing activism. He posted photos and videos from the “Stop the Steal” protest ahead of the 2021 Capitol riot, and his Facebook page is filled with MAGA content, anti-vaccine rhetoric, and attacks on progressive policies. This starkly contrasts with the original legal complaint in his case, which described him simply as a “non–African American voter” from Brusly, Louisiana, whose congressional district was altered by redistricting. The complaint also falsely stated that Callais served on a local board of supervisors in 2024.

In reality, Callais is a partisan activist deeply embedded in election denialism. On X (formerly Twitter), he amplified false claims about non-citizen voting, posting in December 2025 in response to Elon Musk: “This is f#€king insane, non citizens voting in our country.” By February 2025, he was questioning election security, and in January, he labeled the voting system “manipulated,” advocating for hand-counted paper ballots as the sole solution. Callais also dismissed concerns about disenfranchising disabled or elderly voters by eliminating mail-in voting, posting in February: “Find someone to haul you to the polls. Don’t let your disability put the rest of the country at risk.”

Days after the Supreme Court’s ruling, election denier Seth Keshel—known for his debunked voter fraud claims and featured in The New York Times—shared a photo on X of himself shaking hands with Callais. This connection underscores a broader conservative strategy: using sympathetic plaintiffs to dismantle election protections under the guise of legal reform.

The case of Louisiana v. Callais appears to be a calculated effort by Republican politicians and wealthy donors to exploit a plaintiff willing to advance their agenda. With Callais as the face of the lawsuit, conservatives pushed a tailored legal challenge to undermine laws designed to prevent partisan interference in elections.