Galveston County, TX – A County Commission Map Fight With National Consequences

Galveston County, TX – A County Commission Map Fight With National Consequences

By EditorSep 07, 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. The lead case is Petteway v. Galveston County, which includes claims of intentional discrimination and racial gerrymandering under the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments that remain pending in federal court, and a separate dispute over district/precinct boundaries the county adopted in June 2026 is proceeding in state court. A summary of…
FEATURES, Texas, , , ,
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Texas Redistricting Update: July 2025

Texas Redistricting Update: July 2025

By EditorJul 29, 2025
Governor Greg Abbott convened a 30-day special legislative session on July 21, instructing lawmakers to redraw the state’s 38 U.S. House districts. The call follows a letter from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) stating that four districts anchored in Houston and Fort Worth were "coalition districts," and may have been drawn “along strict racial lines,” (a.k.a racial gerrymanders), potentially violating the 14th Amendment. Lawmakers now have until roughly mid-August to craft new boundaries that satisfy equal-population and federal law requirements. Ongoing litigation over the 2021 mapsWhile legislators work on new boundaries, a three-judge federal panel in El Paso is…
Enacting a Redistricting Map, Redistricting Litigation, Texas, , , ,
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Is Louisiana “Begrudgingly” Defending the State’s 2024 Congressional Map?

Is Louisiana “Begrudgingly” Defending the State’s 2024 Congressional Map?

By EditorJan 07, 2025
Louisiana's 2022 congressional map faced a Section 2 vote dilution challenge because it had only one majority-Black district out of 6 in a state where one-third of the population is Black. The lawsuit was successful in that a preliminary injunction was granted on the basis that it was likely that the map violated Section 2 if the case were to go to trial. Louisiana passed a new map with two majority Black districts in early 2024. However, the new map brought new litigation alleging that the 2024 map was an illegal racial gerrymander. A divided federal panel ruled that it…
Racial Gerrymandering, , ,
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Civil Rights Organizations File Amicus Brief in South Carolina Racial Gerrymandering Case

Civil Rights Organizations File Amicus Brief in South Carolina Racial Gerrymandering Case

By EditorAug 22, 2023
Aug. 18 2023 League of Women Voters Press Release: WASHINGTON, DC — Today, the League of Women Voters of the United States joined an amicus brief filed by the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law in Alexander v. South Carolina State Conference of the NAACP, a racial gerrymandering case to be heard before the Supreme Court of the United States this fall. The brief is also joined by the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, the Leadership Conference Education Fund, Asian Americans Advancing Justice | AAJC, Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund, Campaign Legal Center, Demos, and…
Race in Redistricting, , , , , , , , , , ,
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Illinois Federal Court Rejects Voting Rights Act and Racial Gerrymandering Challenges to Legislature’s State Senate and House Maps

By EditorDec 31, 2021
On Thursday, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois issued a per curiam opinion rejecting the claims of three groups of plaintiffs in the consolidated cases (McConchie, Contreras, and East St. Louis NAACP) against the state legislative district maps, which the legislature approved in September. The claims included allegations of racial gerrymandering and minority vote dilution in violation of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. In regards to the votings rights claims, the court characterized the plaintiff's view of the maps as a failure to "maximize" minority electoral success, and warned that the Supreme Court has…
Case Updates, Casedocs, LATEST, LAW, Racial Gerrymandering, Redistricting, Redistricting Litigation, Voting Rights Act, , , , , ,
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A Quick History of North Carolina Redistricting Litigation Post 2010

A Quick History of North Carolina Redistricting Litigation Post 2010

By EditorJan 22, 2018
North Carolina - The redistricting process in North Carolina has the makings of a classic thriller. There are twists, turns, politics, intrigue, and edge of your seat courtroom drama.  Not to mention the crazy quilt of maps.  Here is an overview of what has happened so far in this state’s district drawing saga. (more…)
Partisan Gerrymandering, Racial Gerrymandering, Redistricting Gerrymanders, Redistricting Litigation, , , , , , , , , , , ,
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What’s Next in Texas Redistricting

What’s Next in Texas Redistricting

By EditorMar 17, 2017
On March 10th a federal district court panel in San Antonio Texas ruled that the State legislature’s 2011 congressional redistricting map was drawn in manner that violated the U.S. constitution.  The court found several districts in the map were the product of intentional racial discrimination and minority vote dilution.  While the ruling was a surprise, considering the case had been drawn out for nearly six years, it was also slightly anti-climactic since the ruling referred to a map that Texas no longer uses as its congressional districts.  The court had drawn an interim map in 2012 after finding that some…
Redistricting, Redistricting Gerrymanders, Redistricting Race Rules, , , , , , ,
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Chief Justice Roberts Requests Response in NC Racial Gerrymandering Case

Chief Justice Roberts Requests Response in NC Racial Gerrymandering Case

By EditorJan 08, 2017
North Carolina - A three-judge federal appeals court panel ruled that 28 state legislative districts in North Carolina's 2010 redistricting map were unconstitutional racial gerrymanders that diluted the votes of black and Hispanic voters.  The state has appealed the case to the U.S. Supreme Court, but the lower federal court has already given an order to the North Carolina legislature to start on and finalize a new map for special state elections later in 2017. The Republican-dominated legislature would rather wait and see what the Supreme Court has to say, especially since a newly elected Democratic governor is waiting in the wings.  This…
NEWS, Race in Redistricting, Racial Gerrymandering, Redistricting Gerrymanders, Redistricting Litigation, Redistricting Race Rules, , ,
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NPR and Scotusblog Recap Oral Arguments in Racial Gerrymandering Case

By EditorDec 06, 2016
Wash. DC - NPR's Nina Totenberg recaps Supreme Court oral arguments in , Bethune-Hill v. Virginia State Board of Elections and McCrory v. Harris;  the racial gerrymandering claims arising from the Virginia state legislative and the North Carolina congressional map, which were heard on Monday.  Click below for audio. Read Scotusblog's analysis here.    
NEWS, Race in Redistricting, Racial Gerrymandering, Redistricting, Redistricting Gerrymanders, Redistricting Race Rules, , , , , , , ,
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