Category Archives: Voting Rights Act

“Racial Gerrymandering and Vote Dilution: Shaw v. Reno in Doctrinal Context”

August 14, 2017, 7:35 amSupreme Court, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

James Blumstein has posted this draft on SSRN (forthcoming, Rutgers Law Journal). Here is the abstract: In the opening sentence of her opinion for the Court in Shaw v. Reno, the North Carolina racial gerrymander case, Justice O’Connor observed that… Continue reading

NC: “Redistricting criteria call for partisan maps, no consideration of race”

August 10, 2017, 5:10 pmredistricting, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

WRAL: Map makers can use election data to achieve political goals as they redraw North Carolina’s legislative districts, but they’re forbidden from considering voters’ race under criteria approved Thursday by the House and Senate committees overseeing the process. These rules… Continue reading

“‘You don’t seem serious,’ federal judge tells NC legislative leaders about redistricting efforts”

July 28, 2017, 8:11 amredistricting, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

News & Observer: Federal judges had pointed questions and comments Thursday for the lawyer representing North Carolina lawmakers who have not yet complied with the panel’s order to draw new districts for electing General Assembly members. The judges want the… Continue reading

“Trump DOJ: Trust Texas to Fix Racist Voter ID Law Without Court Oversight”

July 20, 2017, 1:10 pmDepartment of Justice, election administration, The Voting Wars, voter id, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

Texas Observer reports.

“Sensenbrenner: Congress should reauthorize modern Voting Rights Act”

July 18, 2017, 9:52 amVoting Rights Act, VRAARick Hasen

Rep. Sensenbrenner oped: In response to this ruling, I introduced the Voting Rights Amendment Act in 2015, and reintroduced it again last week with my Democratic colleague Rep. John Conyers of Michigan. Among other things, the bill modernizes the original… Continue reading

“The 2016 U.S. Voting Wars: From Bad to Worse”

July 17, 2017, 8:39 amchicanery, election administration, Supreme Court, The Voting Wars, Voting Rights Act, voting technologyRick Hasen

I have posted this new draft on SSRN (for the pre-APSA event, Protecting Electoral Security and Voting Rights: The 2016 U.S. Elections in Comparative Perspective). Here is the abstract: If the “voting wars” which have broken out across the… Continue reading

The Road to Put Texas Back under Federal Supervision for Voting Just Got Longer

July 14, 2017, 2:22 pmSupreme Court, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

There are two federal courts considering whether or not Texas should be “bailed back” into preclearance coverage under Section 3 of the Voting Rights Act. That section lets a court in its discretion put a state under federal supervision for… Continue reading

“Race, Representation, and the Voting Rights Act”

July 12, 2017, 3:04 pmVoting Rights ActRick Hasen

Sophie Schuit and Jon Rogowski have written this article for AJPS. Abstract: Despite wide scholarly interest in the Voting Rights Act, surprisingly little is known about how its specific provisions affected Black political representation. In this article, we draw on… Continue reading

“Voting rights battle in Pasadena could have Texas-wide legal ramifications”

July 11, 2017, 9:09 amVoting Rights ActRick Hasen

Texas Tribune: And that’s where the case comes back to Wheeler’s name. Heath points out that four candidates preferred by Hispanic voters prevailed in the 2015 elections — the only contests held under the 6-2 map. Among them was Wheeler,… Continue reading

“With 2018 election looming, Texas back in court over political maps”

July 10, 2017, 8:23 amredistricting, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

Texas Tribune on the latest trial, starting today, in the never-ending Texas redistricting case.

“Texas Redistricting Back in Court”

July 7, 2017, 2:27 pmredistricting, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

Michael Li: On July 10, a three-judge panel in Texas begins a week-long trial over the state’s congressional and state house plans. Here’s what you need to know.

Trump DOJ Opposes Plaintiffs’ Further Remedies in Texas Voter ID Case

July 6, 2017, 7:32 amelection administration, The Voting Wars, voter id, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

DOJ’s position: Now that Texas passed a new law softening its voter id law, there’s nothing more the court should do. No need to find Texas acted with a discriminatory purpose, no need for an injunction, further judicial supervision,… Continue reading

“Yo Voté: Communities Scramble to Translate Ballots”

June 28, 2017, 1:24 pmVoting Rights ActRick Hasen

Stateline reports.

“As court scoldings pile up, will Texas face a voting rights reckoning?”

June 16, 2017, 4:21 pmelection administration, The Voting Wars, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

Texas Tribune considers whether the redistricting and voter id cases will lead to federal courts putting Texas’s voting rules back under federal supervision.