All posts by Richard Pildes

“The elections clause as a structural constraint on partisan gerrymandering of Congress”

June 20, 2018, 11:38 amUncategorizedRichard Pildes

That’s the title for the piece I was asked to contribute to the SCOTUSblog Symposium on the partisan gerrymandering cases. Here is the piece, and here is an excerpt: There is yet another constitutional provision, not at issue in Gill,… Continue reading

“Will the Court Ever Address Partisan Gerrymandering?”

June 18, 2018, 5:28 pmUncategorizedRichard Pildes

My New York Times op-ed on today’s redistricting decisions is now available here (as most readers know, the NYT chooses its own title for these). Here are a couple excerpts: Among major democracies, only in the United States are self-interested… Continue reading

Update on Ranked-Choice Voting and the SF Mayoral Race

June 14, 2018, 1:35 pmUncategorizedRichard Pildes

Looks like London Breed, the candidate who ranked first on a plurality of ballots in the first round of SF’s ranked-choice election, is the new mayor of SF. This despite earlier reports that suggested the candidate who initially ranked second,… Continue reading

Ohio’s Voter Purge Law Has Been in Place for 24 Years

June 12, 2018, 2:46 pmUncategorizedRichard Pildes

Surprised to learn that? I know I was. I discovered that from Justin Levitt’s blog post, here, which says: This is not a new piece of voter suppression devised by current elections officials: Ohio put the process in place… Continue reading

Ranked-Choice Voting and the Still Ongoing SF Contest for Mayor

June 7, 2018, 10:54 amUncategorizedRichard Pildes

Ranked-choice voting (RCV) is getting a test on bigger stages these days, with the Mayor’s race in San Francisco and the upcoming statewide primaries in Maine now making use of it. SF used RCV on Tuesday in the race for… Continue reading

What Does the Handwriting on the Wall in Gill v. Whitford Say?

May 21, 2018, 9:26 amUncategorizedRichard Pildes

Now that Justice Gorsuch has issued a majority opinion from the Court’s October sitting, it is most likely that Chief Justice Roberts is writing the opinion for the Court in Gill (unless the Court decides to hold the case over… Continue reading

The Brazenness of Partisan Intent in the Court’s Gerrymandering Cases

May 15, 2018, 9:44 amredistricting, UncategorizedRichard Pildes

A significant feature in these cases is the sheer brazenness with which critical legislators in the redistricting process across various states have been willing to blatantly proclaim their aggressive partisan objectives. In the previous major cases before the Court, from… Continue reading

The Oddity of the Oral Argument in the Texas Redistricting Cases

April 30, 2018, 3:14 pmUncategorizedRichard Pildes

As Adam Liptak and others have reported, much of the questioning at oral argument in this important case focused on whether it was premature for the Supreme Court to be hearing the case now. More specifically, it was the “liberal… Continue reading

Why Justice Kennedy Might Still Write the Court’s Opinion in the Wisconsin Partisan Gerrymandering Case

April 25, 2018, 1:27 pmUncategorizedRichard Pildes

After yesterday, the only two Justices who have not issued opinions for the Court from the October sitting, when Gill v. Whitford was argued, are Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Gorsuch. This has given rise to speculation, including on this… Continue reading

What is the First Amendment Theory of Partisan Gerrymandering?

March 25, 2018, 1:06 pmUncategorizedRichard Pildes

This week, the Supreme Court will hear argument in the Maryland partisan-gerrymandering case, Benisek v. Lamone. The case is the first to be framed exclusively as a First Amendment challenge to alleged partisan gerrymandering, and it thus raises new, complex… Continue reading

“President Trump Endorses Earmarks to Aid Legislative Negotiations”

January 9, 2018, 12:39 pmUncategorizedRichard Pildes

Trump is Right About This: President Donald Trump endorsed earmarks at a White House meeting on immigration reform on Tuesday, arguing that it would help build coalitions to pass legislation. Trump told congressional lawmakers, “I think we should look… Continue reading

Is Gerrymandering The Best Way To Make Sure Black Voters Are Represented?

December 14, 2017, 1:40 pmVRAARichard Pildes

This is the third installment of FiveThirtyEight’s well-regarded podcast series called “The Gerrymandering Project.” This episode focuses on racial gerrymandering in North Carolina. Commentary comes from, among many others, Anita Earls, who is now running for a seat… Continue reading

Mobilizing Black Voters in Alabama: Who Does it and Why It’s Become Harder

December 11, 2017, 12:09 pmUncategorizedRichard Pildes

For many decades the most significant organization in Alabama for mobilizing black turnout has been the Alabama Democratic Conference (ADC). The ADC goes back deep into Alabama’s history, even pre-dating the Voting Rights Act. It was founded after the successful… Continue reading

The Maryland Gerrymandering Case: Four Significant Aspects to the Court Deciding to Hear the Case

December 11, 2017, 8:58 amUncategorizedRichard Pildes

1. The significance for the justiciability issue. Deciding to hear the Maryland case is a significant signal that a majority of the Court is not going to hold partisan gerrymandering claims to be non-justiciable (that is, inappropriate for judicial resolution). … Continue reading