Federal court rules Ohio’s congressional map is unconstitutional

[Geee]

A federal court on Friday found Ohio’s congressional map unconstitutional, ordering that a new map be proposed by June ahead of the 2020 elections -- and blocking the state from holding another election under the current map.

“Accordingly, we declare Ohio’s 2012 map an unconstitutional partisan gerrymander, enjoin its use in the 2020 election, and order the enactment of a constitutionally viable replacement,” the decision said.

The case was decided by a three-judge panel in Cincinnati, which ruled unanimously that district boundaries were manipulated by Republican mapmakers, and in a way that violates voters’ rights to choose their representatives democratically.

[Geee]

Supreme Court sides with Texas in redistricting map dispute

A sharply divided Supreme Court on Monday kept in place most of a controversial Texas redistricting plan enacted by the GOP-led legislature, despite lawsuits from civil rights groups claiming it was discriminatory.

The case involved claims of racial gerrymandering -- that election maps had the effect of harming the voting rights of black and Hispanic voters.

The 5-4 decision kept in place all but one challenged district, striking down the conclusions of a special three-judge federal panel that had ruled against the state.

That judicial panel, though, initially had approved the voting maps on an interim basis, boundaries that were subsequently enacted by the state legislature. That, said Justice Samuel Alito for the conservative majority, showed a presumption of good faith.

[Geee]

Supreme Court warily weighs partisan gerrymandering

 

The Supreme Court appeared convinced Tuesday that congressional maps drawn by two state legislatures were overly partisan, but worried whether judges themselves should be the ones to remedy the long-simmering issue.

Partisan gerrymandering may be the wonky side of politics, but the stakes are huge: the balance of power in state legislatures and Congress could tip in coming years, particularly after the 2020 census, when voting boundaries will be redrawn based on population changes.

The justices heard two separate cases. In North Carolina, the 2011 map drawn by the GOP-led legislature now has 10 of 13 congressional seats held by Republicans, despite an overall state population that is mostly divided along party lines, and where statewide elections have recently been close.

And in Maryland, the issue was whether Republican voters could go to court and challenge a redistricting plan they say violated their First Amendment rights. That 2011 voting map shifted the political balance in the state's rural 6th congressional district, turning a traditional GOP stronghold to Democratic control in an overall blue state.