Redistricting Race Rules

Case Filing: Harding v. County of Dallas, Texas

By EditorJan 30, 2015

In January, Anglo voters in Dallas County represented by the Equal Voting Rights Institute filed a minority vote dilution claim against the majority minority County Commissioners Court's 2010 redistricting map, which it describes as "dilut[ing] the overall influence of the Anglo minority in Dallas so that, even if cross-over voting allowed an Anglo preferred candidate to win the County Judgeship, Anglos could not obtain control of the Commissioners Court. It did so, even though it meant dividing political subdivisions, and exaggerating the population disparities between CCDs (whether measured by total population or by CVAP) far beyond the ideal distribution." Read…

Casedocs, Redistricting Race RulesCommissioners court, Dallas County, Harding, Texas

Case Filing: Patino v. City of Pasadena

By EditorJan 30, 2015

Voters represented by the Mexican American Legal Defense Fund filed suit this past November claiming minority vote dilution against the City of Pasadena, Texas. At issue is a change in the voting procedures for the eight member city council. Voters in the city recently passed a proposition to change from eight single member districts to a hybrid system of six single member districts and two at-large seats. Plaintiffs claim that this "will reduce Hispanic voting strength and will impede Hispanic voters’ ability to elect candidates of choice in subsequent in Pasadena City Council elections." Read the Complaint here.

Casedocs, Redistricting Race Rulescity of pasadena, patino, Texas

Listen: Supreme Court Oral Argument in Alabama Racial Gerrymander Case

By EditorDec 08, 2014

Listen to the Supreme Court's oral arguments in the consolidated cases; Alabama Legislative Black Caucus v. Alabama and Alabama Democratic Conference v. Alabama. Democratic lawmakers in the Alabama legislature claim the Republican-led legislature packed Black voters into state legislative districts to dilute their voting power resulting in an unconstitutional racial gerrymander. The court heard oral arguments on November 12th 2014.

Equal Protection, LAW, NEWS, POLICY and PRACTICE, Race in Redistricting, Racial Gerrymandering, Redistricting, Redistricting Gerrymanders, Redistricting Litigation, Redistricting Race RulesAlabama, scotus, States

Supreme Court Will Decide Whether Alabama Gerrymander is a Racial or Partisan One.

By EditorDec 08, 2014

NPR previews Ala. Legis. Black Caucus v. Alabama; a claim alleging that the Alabama state legislature's 2010 legislative redistricting map is a racial gerrymander. Alabama says the Voting Rights Act made them create the map. Listen below. http://www.npr.org/v2/?i=363375057&m=363458938&t=audio

Redistricting, Redistricting Gerrymanders, Redistricting Litigation, Redistricting Race RulesAlabama, scotus

One Year After Shelby, Growing Focus Toward Local Elections

By EditorJul 30, 2014

Since the Supreme Court invalidated the Department of Justices’ authority to enforce the preclearance requirements of section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, voting rights organizations including the NAACP Legal Defense Fund (LDF) insist a deluge of local election activity designed to disenfranchise African-American voters and political candidates will ensue. It has been just over one year since the Shelby decision, in which the court deemed the coverage formula for the act’s preclearance provision unconstitutionally outdated. In this election year, the question now becomes appropriate; Deluge or not? A quick check of the national headlines for the past year or…

Redistricting, Redistricting Litigation, Redistricting Race Rules

2020 Vision : A Noteworthy Prediction for Redistricting in the Next Cycle

By EditorJan 31, 2014

We are just three years into the decade long redistricting cycle that began with the 2010 census. It is a cycle that begins with sorting through winners and losers of the apportionment lottery as some states gain seats while others lose. Next, politics reigns supreme as states redraw political boundaries and proceed with the delicate task of drawing a map that can pass muster both legally and politically. The third phase, which lasts most of the decade, consists of meticulous judicial examination of maps and perhaps usable precedent, just in time for the next round. RealClearPolitics’ Senior elections analyst Sean…

Redistricting, Redistricting Race Rules, Strategy and Politics2020, majority-minority districts

Why A San Antonio Court Will Consider Preclearance for Texas

By EditorSep 25, 2013

The Texas legislature seemed to be moving on from the fight over its 2011 redistricting maps. The Supreme Court mooted the case against its maps in Shelby v. Holder by invalidating section 4 of the Voting Rights Act this past summer. The San Antonio court litigation considering additional claims against the maps from several plaintiffs, has stalled in the wake of the Shelby decision, but not before arranging the creation of new, temporary redistricting maps used for the 2012 election. The temporary maps became permanent after the Texas legislature and governor enacted the court-sanctioned maps. Texas officials would have liked…

Redistricting, Redistricting Litigation, Redistricting Race RulesTexas

California Plaintiffs find Easier Litigation Route with State Voting Rights Act

By EditorAug 27, 2013

Minority plaintiffs seeking redress in the courts to combat various forms of minority vote dilution generally had only sections 2 and 5 of the federal Voting Rights Act to make their case. Section 5 only applies to election law changes and was recently nullified by the U.S. Supreme Court’s June 2013 decision to invalidate its coverage formula, - leaving section 2 as the only feasible option for parties with vote dilution claims; Unless you happen to live in California. The California Voting Rights Act (VRA) passed in 2001, makes it easier on plaintiffs to make the case that a particular…

Redistricting, Redistricting Litigation, Redistricting Race Rulesat-large voting, California, CVRA

Persily and Mann Review First Post Shelby Dialogue Among Voting Rights Scholars

By EditorAug 10, 2013

On July 1st, thought leaders in the world of voting rights gathered together at a symposium titled “Voting Rights after Shelby County v. Holder.” Participants included both scholars and practitioners of voting rights law and a thought-provoking discussion ensued exploring the limits of the Shelby decision, the future of the Voting Rights Act and the immediate effects of the decision on voting rights doctrine and practice. The question of the continuing vitality of section 5 of the Voting Rights Act has more than two sides; there are opinions at many different angles, thus the debate is especially nuanced and complex.…

Redistricting, Redistricting Litigation, Redistricting Race Rulessymposium

Justice Dept. Forced to “Drop the Ball” in Some Local Election Controversies

By EditorAug 06, 2013

Before June 25, the Justice Dept. had many balls in the air as it negotiated hundreds of preclearance submissions from local jurisdictions covered under section 5 of the Voting Rights Act. These entities seek approval for any and all election changes; from redistricting maps of council districts to polling place changes. The Supreme Court changed all of that when it invalidated the coverage formula for section 5, effectively dropping all of those balls the Justice Dept. had in the air. The resulting mess from the sudden halt of an extensive administrative reporting system is bound to have some unforeseen outcomes.…

Redistricting, Redistricting Litigation, Redistricting Race Rules, UncategorizedDOJ, local