A group of civil rights leaders has announced a new March on Washington to fight for voting rights. The event, set to occur on the anniversary of the famous civil rights march, comes in protest of the recent Supreme Court decision to gut a portion of the Voting Rights Act.

New March on Washington announced for August

The Rev. Al Sharpton, Martin Luther King III and Arndrea Waters King announced Tuesday that a coalition of civil rights organizations will gather in the nation’s capital to call for the protection of voting rights.

The march comes months after a Supreme Court ruling that undermined the Voting Rights Act of 1965, a ruling Sharpton described as “a bullet ‌in the heart of the voting rights movement.”

The upcoming gathering, called the March on Washington 2026: Defend the Vote, will take place on Aug. 28, marking the 63rd anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech during the 1963 March on Washington.

“Defending the vote means defending the ‌foundation of our democracy,” Martin Luther King III said in a statement about the new march. “Sixty-three years after my father stood at the Lincoln Memorial, we are called to march again, not only in remembrance, but in action.”

Coalition of rights organizations set to convene in Washington, D.C.

In a press release shared with Blavity, the coalition described the upcoming march as “a nonpartisan, unified mobilization that brings together labor, clergy, youth organizers, and community leaders around three shared goals: defending voting rights, securing economic dignity, and ensuring affordability for everyday people.”

In addition to Sharpton’s National Action Network, the press release lists two dozen organizations participating in the march, including the NAACP, National Council of Negro Women, UnidosUS, the American Federation of Teachers, Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity Inc., Bet Mishpachah and more.

The coalition also includes a delegation from the Congressional Black Caucus, including CBC Chair Rep. Yvette Clarke, D-N.Y.

Voting rights continue to be undermined

The August march comes in response to the recent Supreme Court decision to gut the Voting Rights Act of 1965, a key piece of Civil Rights Movement-era legislation that, along with the Civil Rights Act of 1964, followed Dr. King’s march.

As Blavity previously reported, the Supreme Court’s conservative majority ruled in Louisiana v. Callais that it would no longer uphold the section of the Voting Rights Act protecting predominantly Black congressional districts.

Immediately after the ruling, Republican-led governments in Southern states began eliminating Black districts, a process experts say could lead to one-third of the Congressional Black Caucus losing their seats.

The Louisiana case is the latest Supreme Court decision to gut portions of the Voting Rights Act, removing provisions meant to protect the voting rights and voting power of Black and other marginalized people.

The August march also comes as President Donald Trump pushes congressional Republicans to pass the SAVE America Act, a restrictive voter ID law that experts warn would disproportionately affect women, people of color and other groups.

With the midterm elections approaching and Republicans pushing to enact additional voting restrictions, the upcoming March on Washington comes as debates over voting rights continue nationwide.

The march is intended to honor the impact of the 1963 event while continuing its legacy by advocating for voting rights amid a new round of legal and political challenges.