New Developments in Yakima, WA Vote Dilution Case

New Developments in Yakima, WA Vote Dilution Case

By EditorMar 19, 2015
Yakima, WA: The Yakima city council voted this week to give themselves more time to decide if the council will appeal a recent federal court ruling invalidating its at-large method of electing city council members. The Hispanic population in the city is 42% and Hispanic voters had been unable to an elect a candidate of their choosing in the at-large scheme. The court had to make a finding of racially polarized voting in past election to invalidate the at-large system. The recent court ruling required the city to divide voters into districts, both the city and the ACLU -who was a…
Local Redistricting, Redistricting, ,
Read More
The Census Bureau Warms Up to Prison Gerrymandering

The Census Bureau Warms Up to Prison Gerrymandering

By EditorMar 16, 2015
The Census Bureau boasted in its 2010 View from the States,” that it has listened to state requests and is working toward helping states facilitate the latest redistricting trend: prisoner reallocation. The Bureau announced that it would conduct a feasibility study regarding prisoner reallocation - counting prisoners at their last residential address, although a previous study nearly ten years go found it to be cost prohibitive. Currently, the two states that have already endeavored to reallocate prisoners have used the Bureau’s Group Quarters file, which was released early during the 2010 census cycle for that purpose. The group quarters data…
Redistricting, Redistricting Prisoners, ,
Read More
Do Ineligible Voters Infringe on Eligible Voter’s Rights?

Do Ineligible Voters Infringe on Eligible Voter’s Rights?

By EditorMar 11, 2015
The Supreme Court will decide soon whether to take the case of a Texas voter who claims that her vote has been unconstitutionally diluted because her rural district has substantially more voters compared to other, urban districts comprised of many noncitizen, ineligible voters. The claim is that this makes her vote less influential than her counterparts in urban districts. The practical question in this case is whether line-drawers should be using 'total population' or "citizen voting age population' as the measure for drawing equally populated election districts. This Cato Institute article explains the case; Evenwel v. Abbott  in more detail.
Redistricting, , ,
Read More
Arizona Supreme Court Case Could Threaten Redistricting Commissions in these 6 States

Arizona Supreme Court Case Could Threaten Redistricting Commissions in these 6 States

By EditorMar 10, 2015
Last week the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Arizona State Legislature v. Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission. The case centers around whether voters by initiative, can transfer the authority to redraw state and congressional boundaries from the state legislature to an independent commission, something Arizona has been doing since 2000. This Brennan Center report lists those states with commissions that could be in jeopardy should the Supreme Court side with the Arizona legislature in this case. Read the report here.
Elections Clause, FEATURES, POLICY and PRACTICE, Redistricting Commissions,
Read More

Listen to Supreme Court Oral Argument in the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission Case

By EditorMar 09, 2015
Last week the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Arizona State Legislature v. Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission. The case revolves around the Republican-led legislatures' challenge to a state constitutional amendment that voters passed by initiative in 2000 giving a bipartisan commission control over redrawing Arizona's state and congressional district boundaries. While there are some initial issues of standing, the substantive question in this case will be whether the U.S. Constitution's Elections Clause prevents a state from transferring redistricting authority to an entity other than the legislature. So far, there have been several early impressions of the oral argument published, many…
Elections Clause, Redistricting Commissions, Redistricting Litigation, , , ,
Read More
Election Assistance Commission Back in Action

Election Assistance Commission Back in Action

By EditorMar 04, 2015
Created in 2002 as part of the Help America Vote Act, the EAC was established to help states modernize antiquated voting systems in the wake of the infamous Florida recount of Bush v. Gore. The agency also certified election systems, created technical standards and acted as a clearinghouse for election and voting information. Until this January, the commission had been leaderless with all four commissioner spots open. Three commissioners were approved by congress last December and the commission held its first public meeting just last week. View the webcast here:
Redistricting, ,
Read More

Early Analysis of Supreme Court Oral Argument in Arizona Redistricting Case

By EditorMar 03, 2015
Hear are early assessments of the Supreme Court's oral argument yesterday in Arizona Legislative Black Caucus v. Arizona. Click the links for analysis. SCOTUSBLOG: Argument analysis: Literalism vs. the power of the people NYT: Court Skeptical of Arizona Plan for Less-Partisan Congressional Redistricting NPR: Supreme Court Seems Divided Over Independent Redistricting Commissions Politico: High Court Hears Redistricting Case Election Law Blog: Analysis: Supreme Court Looks to Endanger Citizen Redistricting Commissions and MORE Christian Science Monitor: Supreme Court: Can independent commissions draw redistricting lines?    
Elections Clause, FEATURES, Redistricting,
Read More

Supreme Court May Resurrect Alabama Legislative Black Caucus’ Equal Population Claims

By EditorMar 02, 2015
The Alabama Legislative Black Caucus' Supreme Court Case was late last year, and focused on whether that state's 2012 legislative redistricting plan was an unconstitutional racial gerrymander. Interestingly, there was a second question presented in the case at the district court level: "whether the 2012 redistricting plans allocate control of local delegations in a manner which violates Equal Protection, effectively denying county residents equal voting rights." This "second" question is actually an equal population challenge, and is based on the redistricting maps' gratuitous breaching of county jurisdiction lines. In Alabama, it is local state legislative delegations that have most of…
Casedocs, Equal Protection, FEATURES, POLICY and PRACTICE, Redistricting Gerrymanders, Redistricting Litigation, , ,
Read More

Previewing Supreme Court Oral Argument in Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission v. Arizona

By EditorFeb 26, 2015
Michael Morley ( assistant professor of law at the Dwayne O. Andreas School of Law at Barry University) and Nick Stephanopoulos (assistant professor of law at the University of Chicago Law School) join Jeffrey Rosen of the National Constitutional Center to discuss the upcoming Supreme Court oral arguments in Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission v. Arizona scheduled for March 2nd. Listen to the podcast here.   http://www.podbean.com/media/player/tu8c9-54130f/initByJs/1/auto/1
Redistricting, Redistricting Commissions,
Read More
Los Angeles City Council Redistricting Upheld by Federal Court

Los Angeles City Council Redistricting Upheld by Federal Court

By EditorFeb 25, 2015
Los Angeles - City Council President Herb Wesson was vindicated by a federal court's ruling that the council's controversial 2012 redistricting map was not an unconstitutional racial gerrymander.  Despite so-called damning video evidence submitted by plaintiffs that showed Wesson telling an audience that the map "guaranteed" at least two minority council members going forward, the court found the districts in question to be racially diverse and drawn in accordance with traditional redistricting principles. In the end, the court did not believe the entire council had racially discriminatory goals when drawing the map. Read the Article here.
Local Redistricting, Redistricting, Redistricting Criteria, Redistricting Litigation, , ,
Read More