Galveston County, TX: A Local Redistricting Case With National Reach

Galveston County, TX: A Local Redistricting Case With National Reach

By EditorAug 21, 20260 Comments
The litigation over Galveston County's precinct maps - the term Texas law uses for county commissioner, justice of the peace, and constable districts - is closely watched for its implications for voting rights law, in particular the viability of minority coalition claims under Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. In addition, claims of intentional discrimination and racial gerrymandering under the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments remain pending in federal court, and separate litigation over a new map the county adopted in June 2026 is proceeding in state court. A summary of the litigation thus far is below. Galveston County voters…
Texas, , , ,
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Callais Comes to County Government: Federal Judge Applies New VRA Standard to Mississippi Local Map

Callais Comes to County Government: Federal Judge Applies New VRA Standard to Mississippi Local Map

By EditorJun 25, 2026
A federal judge in Mississippi ruled on June 24 that DeSoto County's 2022 electoral map does not violate Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, dismissing a challenge brought by the DeSoto County NAACP, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, and two Black voters who alleged the map dilutes Black voting power across 25 local offices, including the Board of Supervisors, Board of Education, Election Commission, justice court judges, and constables. The U.S. District Court, applying the Supreme Court's April 29 ruling in Louisiana v. Callais, found the plaintiffs failed all three preconditions of the Gingles test - the threshold legal standard…
Local Redistricting, Mississippi, , ,
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Census Watchdog Flags Risks to the 2030 Count

Census Watchdog Flags Risks to the 2030 Count

By EditorJun 18, 2026
A new report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) warns that the Census Bureau, having narrowed the scope of its 2026 Census Test, may finalize important parts of the 2030 count's design before it has evidence that those methods actually work. Released June 4, 2026, the report describes that the Bureau has reduced planned test sites from six to two and 19 planned operational activities to nine, leaving fewer opportunities to evaluate the new approaches the agency hopes to use at the end of the decade. These preparations matter far beyond the test itself, because the once-a-decade count determines…
Census Data and Geography, , ,
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Maryland Enacts State Voting Rights Act, with Local Elections at the Center

Maryland Enacts State Voting Rights Act, with Local Elections at the Center

By EditorMay 25, 2026
Governor Wes Moore signed the Voting Rights Act of 2026 for Counties and Municipal Corporations (SB 255) into law on April 28, 2026, making Maryland the ninth state in the country to enact its own voting rights protections. The law directly targets local government electoral systems, prohibiting any county or municipal body from using an election method that dilutes or impairs a protected class's ability to elect candidates of their choice. To enforce the new standard, the Maryland Attorney General is authorized to investigate and sue local jurisdictions found to be operating such systems, while individual voters also gain a…
Local Redistricting, Maryland,
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NAACP Withdraws Voting Rights Lawsuit as Fayette County, TN Adopts New District Map

NAACP Withdraws Voting Rights Lawsuit as Fayette County, TN Adopts New District Map

By EditorJul 11, 2025
The NAACP Legal Defense Fund (LDF) has voluntarily dismissed its voting discrimination lawsuit against Fayette County, Tennessee, following the county commission's unanimous approval of a revised redistricting plan. The lawsuit, filed in February 2025, accused the county of intentionally diluting the voting power of Black residents through its 2021 district map, which included no majority-Black districts despite the county's population being over 25% Black. Faced with lawsuits from both the LDF and the U.S. Department of Justice, Fayette County officials swiftly responded by drafting a new districting plan. This revised map, approved unanimously by commissioners in June 2025, establishes three…
Local Redistricting, Tennessee, Voting Rights Act, , ,
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Virginia Beach Court Voids Single-Member District Plan on a Technicality

Virginia Beach Court Voids Single-Member District Plan on a Technicality

By EditorJul 02, 2025
A Virginia Beach Circuit Court has struck down the city’s 10-district, “10-1” council-and-mayor voting plan, because the city passed the rule change by simple ordinance rather than securing the charter change the state constitution requires. The court's ruling leaves the 2022 and 2024 election outcomes untouched, but bars use of the district map going forward unless the General Assembly (which passed a charter-amendment bill in 2024, but was vetoed by Gov. Glenn Youngkin) or city voters cure the defect. The City Council has already scheduled a November referendum asking residents whether to keep the 10 single-member districts or revert to…
Local Redistricting,
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Baltimore County’s Proposed Council Map Adds Two Members but There’s No Agreement on Map Yet

Baltimore County’s Proposed Council Map Adds Two Members but There’s No Agreement on Map Yet

By EditorJun 28, 2025
The Baltimore County Redistricting Commission’s final redistricting map proposal reshapes the council into nine districts, up from seven, following voter approval of a charter amendment. The proposed map includes two majority-Black districts, two majority-BIPOC districts, and five majority-White districts. Council member Izzy Patoka emphasized that the expansion offers more opportunities for women and people of color, but acknowledged the map still needs five of the current council’s seven votes to pass, meaning bipartisan support will be essential. The plan faces resistance from Republican council members such as David Marks, who criticized the map for having a “partisan objective” and splitting communities like…
Enacting a Redistricting Map, Local Redistricting, Maryland, , ,
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