Update: Status of New Hampshire Redistricting Litigation(July 2023)

Update: Status of New Hampshire Redistricting Litigation(July 2023)

By EditorJul 21, 2023
New Hampshire reportedly was the last state to complete redistricting for the 2020 cycle after the legislature and governor failed to agree on a map. The political struggles surrounding the enactment of a congressional map have given way to legal challenges against the state senate and house maps. Details below. Congressional Map The New Hampshire State Supreme Court took jurisdiction in case of an impasse over the congressional map in April of 2022. (Norelli v. Scanlan) The legislature presented two maps to the governor - one in March and another in May - both of which the governor announced his…
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Utah Supreme Court Requests Additional Briefing in Partisan Gerrymandering Challenge

Utah Supreme Court Requests Additional Briefing in Partisan Gerrymandering Challenge

By EditorJul 19, 2023
The Utah Supreme Court seemed to be grappling with the issue of the citizen's right to initiative versus the legislature's right to enact laws. After oral argument in a case alleging that the 2021 congressional district map was a partisan gerrymander, (see League of Women Voters of Utah v. Utah State Legislature) the question arose of whether the legislature had the right to repeal a statute with anti-gerrymandering provisions (Proposition 4) - which it did in 2020. In October of last year, the trial court dismissed the claims regarding the Utah Legislature’s repeal of Proposition 4 but allowed the League's…
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Watch: Utah Supreme Court Oral Argument in Congressional Map Partisan Gerrymandering Case

Watch: Utah Supreme Court Oral Argument in Congressional Map Partisan Gerrymandering Case

By EditorJul 18, 2023
The Utah Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a partisan gerrymandering challenge to the state's 2021 congressional map. The case is League of Women Voters of Utah v. Utah State Legislature. Watch on YouTube. For news, litigation documents, district maps, and more information about Utah Redistricting, visit the Utah Redistricting Almanac Page. The Almanac home page for all 50 states is here. Find us on:
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NY Court Gives Redistricting Commission “2nd Bite of the Apple” for Legislative Map

NY Court Gives Redistricting Commission “2nd Bite of the Apple” for Legislative Map

By EditorOct 08, 2022
Citing a flawed redistricting process, the Supreme Court of the State of New York ordered the state's Independent Redistricting Commission to try again to draw new legislative districts for the state assembly. The decision comes after the commission's failure to agree on redistricting maps earlier in the year, and a long protracted legal battle that resulted in the state's highest court invalidating the congressional, senate, and assembly maps. Read the order here. While the congressional and senate maps were redrawn by a court-appointed special master for the 2022 elections, the legislative map will not be needed until 2024. The commission…
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Court: New York Will Have Congressional and Senate Maps by May 20.

Court: New York Will Have Congressional and Senate Maps by May 20.

By EditorApr 29, 2022
The litigation surrounding New York's congressional and senate maps will end by May 20, according to the Stueben County appellate court. The court's announcement comes after the state's highest court invalidated both maps on Wednesday (April 27th). Here is a recap of the litigation which began in February. The litigation surrounding these two maps began in mid-February and sped through all three levels of the state court system (trial court, appellate court, and the state's highest court) in just over 2 months. While there was some disagreement among courts regarding whether the maps enacted by the legislature were the product…
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New York Redistricting Maps Thrown Out by State Trial Court. Congressional Map Declared Partisan Gerrymander

New York Redistricting Maps Thrown Out by State Trial Court. Congressional Map Declared Partisan Gerrymander

By EditorApr 01, 2022
On Thursday, Mar. 31, a New York trial court invalidated the legislature's 2022 congressional and state legislative maps. The decision was primarily grounded in the procedural requirements of New York's state constitution, which the court said the legislature violated when it adopted maps of its own after the Independent Redistricting Commission (IRC) failed to produce a second set of maps. Read the opinion. According to the court, the constitutional provision creating the IRC allowed the legislature to draw maps only after the IRC submits 2 sets of maps and the legislature rejects them. The IRC deadlocked in Jan of 2022…
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Maryland State Court Throws Out 2021 Congressional Map Citing Extreme Gerrymandering

By EditorMar 27, 2022
On Friday, the Senior Judge of the Circuit Court for Anne Arundel County signed an order prohibiting use of the congressional map that the Maryland legislature approved - over a gubernatorial veto - during a special session in December 2021. State officials were given five days to redraw the map. The legislature is currently in session until April 11. There is no word on whether the state will appeal. Read the order and opinion. The ruling concerned consolidated cases against the map by several plaintiffs and is notable as it makes Maryland among the first few states to fall victim…
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U.S. Supreme Court Denies Request to Block North Carolina Court’s Congressional Map

U.S. Supreme Court Denies Request to Block North Carolina Court’s Congressional Map

By EditorMar 08, 2022
On Monday the U.S. Supreme Court denied an emergency application for a stay of the North Carolina State supreme court's decision to invalidate the congressional map that the legislature enacted in 2021 and the state trial court's decision to block a second map enacted by the legislature on February 17. If the high court had granted an emergency stay, the upcoming 2022 elections would have been conducted under the legislature's Feb. 17 map, while the court considered the case for a decision at some later date. Read the court's order. Map and Court Decision Timeline Feb. 23 2022: A state…
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OH Supreme Court Rejects Ohio Commission Maps for a 2nd Time. Describes Their Efforts as “Misguided.”

By EditorFeb 07, 2022
The Ohio Supreme Court on Monday rejected a 2nd revised map of state Senate and House districts drawn by the Ohio Redistricting Commission. The first map was invalidated by the court on Jan 12. The latest maps, adopted by the commission on Jan. 22nd, still violate state constitutional provisions prohibiting maps that favor any one political party according to the court. The commission must adopt a 3rd plan and file it with the court by February 18, 2022. Read the order here. The court interprets the state constitution's proportionality standard to mean that any map should reflect the average voting…
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North Carolina Supreme Court Rejects Legislature’s 2021 Redistricting Maps. Redraw Ordered.

By EditorFeb 06, 2022
On Friday, the North Carolina State Supreme Court overturned a lower court ruling that upheld the legislature's 2021 congressional and state legislative maps against both racial and partisan gerrymandering claims. The court ordered the General Assembly to submit remedial maps for review to the trial court on or before Feb. 18 at 5:00 p.m. The trial court must approve or adopt compliant congressional and state legislative districting plans no later than noon on Feb. 23 2022. Read the Order. The State Supreme Court accepted and agreed with the trial court's assessment that the maps were a partisan gerrymander. The difference…
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