Category Archives: redistricting

“Ohio Supreme Court again rejects legislative maps, sends redistricting commission back to drawing board”

February 8, 2022, 7:28 amredistrictingRick Hasen

Columbus Dispatch: The Ohio Supreme Court once again rejected legislative maps that Republicans drew to disproportionately favor their candidates, sending mapmakers back to the drawing board and Ohio’s primary into massive uncertainty.For the second time, Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor… Continue reading

Breaking and Analysis: Supreme Court on 5-4 Vote Stays District Court Order Requiring Alabama to Draw Second Black Majority District, and the Signs for the Voting Rights Act are Ominous

February 7, 2022, 3:38 pmredistricting, Supreme Court, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

The Supreme Court issued a stay in the Alabama congressional Voting Rights Act case I wrote about last week and set the case (actually two related cases) for argument. This is bad news in the short run and likely worse… Continue reading

“Courts give Democrats unexpected boost on redistricting”

February 7, 2022, 11:59 amredistrictingRick Hasen

Reid Wilson for The Hill.

Could North Carolina Go to the Supreme Court, Arguing that the North Carolina Supreme Court in Requiring Redrawing of Congressional Districts Usurped North Carolina General Assembly’s Power?

February 4, 2022, 3:47 pmredistricting, Supreme CourtRick Hasen

From my tweet thread: Maybe this is crazy, but I could see Republicans appealing to SCOTUS, arguing that the state court ruling usurped the power of the state legislature to set the rules for congressional elections in Art. 1… Continue reading

Breaking: North Carolina Supreme Court, on 4-3 Party Line Vote, Strikes Down Congressional and State Legislative District Plans in Violation of the State Constitution

February 4, 2022, 3:18 pmredistrictingRick Hasen

This result was anticipated given the court’s earlier rulings along these lines and the partisan split on the court. The court promises a more extensive opinion to follow. Of particular interest is this statement to guide the state legislature in… Continue reading

“G.O.P. Lawsuit Casts N.Y. Congressional Maps as Brazen Gerrymandering”

February 4, 2022, 7:57 amredistrictingRick Hasen

NYT: A Republican-led group of voters filed a lawsuit late Thursday challenging New York’s freshly drawn congressional maps as unconstitutional, a day after Democratic lawmakers in Albany approved district lines that would heavily favor their party in its battle to… Continue reading

Alabama, in Its Stay Application Before the Supreme Court, Asks the Conservative Court to Cut Back the Scope of Voting Rights Act in Redistricting Cases, With Potentially Major Voting Rights Implications

February 3, 2022, 1:43 pmredistricting, Supreme Court, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

I have now had a chance to review Alabama’s request for stays in 2 related cases (21A375 and 21A376). This post is going to get wonky and technical, so let me begin with the bottom line: if and… Continue reading

Evaluating congressional gerrymanders

February 2, 2022, 3:16 pmelection subversion risk, redistricting, UncategorizedNed Foley

I’m bringing over here to ELB part of a Twitter dialogue that’s emerged in the wake of my post this morning on Gerrymandering as Democracy Protection??? In response to an exchange I had with Rick Hasen on this topic, Nick… Continue reading

Gerrymandering as Democracy Protection???

February 2, 2022, 7:01 amelection subversion risk, redistrictingNed Foley

I’ve been troubled by the spate of stories in recent weeks about the possibility of the Democratic Party being able to counter-gerrymander itself to something of a draw in this decade’s redistricting wars. The point of elections, as I see… Continue reading

Must-Read Michael Wines NYT Story on North Carolina Redistricting Battle Suggests Republican Legislature Could Try to Impeach Democratic State Supreme Court Justices to Stop Effort to Thwart Gerrymandering

January 29, 2022, 11:08 amchicanery, judicial elections, redistrictingRick Hasen

This would be ugly even by North Carolina standards.

Breaking: Alabama Seeks Supreme Court Order Blocking Requirement for State to Create Second Black Majority Congressional District, Queueing Up First Major Test of Voting Rights Act in New Decade of Redistricting

January 28, 2022, 1:38 pmredistricting, Supreme Court, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

You can find the application at this link. The Supreme Court is likely to first grant a brief administrative stay while it decides what to do on the stay application. It would not be surprising to see the Court set… Continue reading

“Yelling, accusations of bullying turn Michigan redistricting meeting into chaos”

January 28, 2022, 7:17 amcitizen commissions, redistrictingRick Hasen

Detroit Free Press: A Thursday meeting of Michigan’s redistricting commission saw accusations of bullying, yelling, a failed censure vote against the group’s chair and a public apology for the tense exchanges that came as the group stares down … Continue reading

“Texas violated voting rights law during redistricting, retiring state GOP senator says in sworn court statement”

January 27, 2022, 11:58 amredistricting, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

Texas Tribune: In a sworn declaration submitted as part of an ongoing federal court challenge, a senior Republican state senator with redistricting experience said he believes his party violated federal voting laws when it drew new boundaries for state Senate… Continue reading

“Black and Latino voters have been shortchanged in redistricting, advocates and some judges say”

January 26, 2022, 7:03 amredistricting, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

WaPo: New congressional maps are completed in more than half the country, and so far Democrats have been spared the redistricting losses they endured a decade ago, a small mercy for their efforts to cling to their fragile House… Continue reading

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