{"id":2024270,"date":"2023-09-07T04:45:04","date_gmt":"2023-09-07T08:45:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/in-depth-federal-state-lawsuits-seek-constitutional-clarity-on-racial-gerrymanders\/"},"modified":"2023-09-07T05:02:59","modified_gmt":"2023-09-07T09:02:59","slug":"in-depth-federal-state-lawsuits-seek-constitutional-clarity-on-racial-gerrymanders","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/in-depth-federal-state-lawsuits-seek-constitutional-clarity-on-racial-gerrymanders\/","title":{"rendered":"Federal and state lawsuits aim to clarify constitutionality of &#8220;racial gerrymanders.&#8221;"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fin-depth-federal-state-lawsuits-seek-constitutional-clarity-on-racial-gerrymanders%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2024270&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div data-post-content=\"true\" class=\"post_content\" id=\"post_content\">\n<p>It\u2019s a fine \u2063litigative line:\u200b Gerrymandering by a \u2062majority party for political purposes is legal because elections have consequences. But \u2064if the consequences of gerrymandering predetermine election results by\u200c diluting\u2063 the voting efficacy of \u200cracial minorities, then it \u2064is illegal.<\/p>\n<p>Defining \u2063when\u2063 \u201cracial gerrymandering\u201d is constitutional and when it \u200dis\u200b not is a nub of \u200bcontention in dozens of proceeding and pending redistricting lawsuits nationwide. These range from how a Texas county\u200d crafted its county commission precincts to a South Carolina \u2064case challenging the \u2064state Legislature\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/rep-adam-kinzinger-wont-rule-out-2024-white-house-run\/\" title=\"Rep. Adam Kinzinger Won't Rule Out 2024 White House Run\">congressional district map<\/a> to be heard before the United States Supreme Court in October.<\/p>\n<p>Plaintiffs in \u200dmost suits defend \u201cracial gerrymandering\u201d as mandated under the 1965 federal Voting Rights Act\u2019s \u200d(VRA) Section 2 to ensure that minority \u200bvoters have a \u200c\u201creasonable\u2062 chance \u2064to elect candidates \u200bof their choice\u201d as well as for violations of voters\u2019\u200b 14th\u2063 Amendment Equal Protection \u200bclause rights.<\/p>\n<div class=\"shortcode\">\n<div class=\"border-comp-divider mb-4 mr-4 w-full max-w-[500px] border px-5 py-4 text-[16px] leading-[20px] text-[#262626] md:float-left\" id=\"in_article_related_stories\">\n<div class=\"mb-3 font-sans text-[16px] font-semibold uppercase leading-[19px] text-[#2F2F2F]\">Related Stories<\/div>\n<div class=\"mb-4 flex gap-2\">\n<div class=\"grow\">\n<div class=\"mb-1 line-clamp-2\">\n            <a href=\"http:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/us\/alabama-does-what-alabama-does-black-lawmakers-decry-scotus-forced-redistricting-maps-passed-by-gop-5414041\">Black \u200cLawmakers Decry SCOTUS Forced \u2063Redistricting Maps Passed by GOP<\/a>\n          <\/div>\n<div class=\"text-comp-caption text-[14px] leading-[18px]\">7\/22\/2023<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"shrink-0 basis-[120px]\">\n          <a href=\"http:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/us\/alabama-does-what-alabama-does-black-lawmakers-decry-scotus-forced-redistricting-maps-passed-by-gop-5414041\"><\/a>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"mb-4 flex gap-2\">\n<div class=\"grow\">\n<div class=\"mb-1 line-clamp-2\">\n            <a href=\"http:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/us\/supreme-court-rules-in-ohio-redistricting-dispute-5383907\">Supreme Court\u200c Rules in Ohio Redistricting Dispute<\/a>\n          <\/div>\n<div class=\"text-comp-caption text-[14px] leading-[18px]\">7\/10\/2023<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"shrink-0 basis-[120px]\">\n          <a href=\"http:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/us\/supreme-court-rules-in-ohio-redistricting-dispute-5383907\"><\/a>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>In several cases, however, plaintiffs\u2014often appeals by mostly Republican-led states\u2014claim \u200cthat such allegedly expansive interpretations of the VRA\u2019s Section\u200b 2 do not affirm voters\u2019 rights but violate them \u200cunder the 14th Amendment\u2019s Equal Protection clause.<\/p>\n<p>They argue that \u201cover \u2063emphasis\u201d\u2062 on race as the primary redistricting \u2062factor is unconstitutional because political ideologies cannot be\u2062 inherently \u200dascribed by race, nor should \u200dpolitical\u200b party \u200ballegiance be systemically assumed by race.<\/p>\n<p>Anticipated rulings in a bevy of unresolved state and federal litigation in the wake of post-2020 U.S. \u200bCensus \u200dreapportionment \u2064and \u2064subsequent 2021 redistricting are expected between now and June,\u200c when the\u2063 Supreme\u200c Court traditionally\u200b issues its decisions.<\/p>\n<div class=\"shortcode post-related-videos\">\n<div class=\"lazyload-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"lazyload-placeholder\"><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Those determinations may mean that come Nov.\u2062 5, 2024, voters in\u200c some states will\u2064 be casting \u2063ballots in different \u200cstate legislative and congressional districts than they did in 2022.<\/p>\n<p>How and where those court decisions shake out could also \u200chave significant repercussions\u200c in Congress, \u2062potentially \u200bmaking it structurally more difficult\u200d for Republicans to expand or \u200bsustain their current 222-212 U.S. House majority in \u20632024 elections.<\/p>\n<p>Lawsuits \u200bin\u2062 at least six states demand \u2064that GOP-led\u2063 legislatures create additional competitive congressional districts for \u2062Democrats, while\u200c only \u2064two redistricting challenges could foster\u200d decisions creating more competitive \u2063districts for Republican congressional candidates.<\/p>\n<div>\n<figure style=\"width:600px\" class=\"alignnone\"><figcaption>Alabama State Legislature General Counsel Jimmy Entrekin discusses the ramifications of the Supreme Court&#8217;s June 2023 ruling in Allen v. Milligan,\u2062 which forced\u2062 Alabama\u2063 lawmakers to redraw the state&#8217;s \u200cseven congressional\u2063 districts, during a presentation at \u2063the annual National Conference of State\u200c Legislatures (NCSL)\u2062 Legislative Summit\u200d in \u2063Indianapolis, Ind., on Aug. 16,\u2062 2023. (John\u2063 Haughey\/The Epoch Times)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"my-5\">\n<h2>Supreme \u200dCourt&#8217;s <em>Allen<\/em> Ruling<\/h2>\n<p>    \u2064  Much\u2062 of the agitation and\u200d speculation \u2063stems from the U.S. Supreme \u200bCourt\u2019s 5-4 June 8 ruling in\u200d <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.supremecourt.gov\/opinions\/22pdf\/21-1086_1co6.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Allen v. Milligan<\/a><\/em>.<br \/>\n\u2062    It upheld a\u2064 January \u20642022 determination by \u200ca three-judge U.S. Northern District of Alabama panel, \u200cwhich \u2063determined that the \u200dRepublican-supermajority state Legislature\u2019s reapportioned \u2064post-2020 Census maps denied black voters a \u200c\u201creasonable opportunity to elect a\u200d candidate \u2062of their choice.\u201d\n  <\/div>\n<p>The lower federal court\u200d rejected the\u2062 Legislature\u2019s reapportioned \u2062map of Alabama\u2019s seven congressional districts and ordered a\u2063 new map \u2063be redrawn\u2063 to incorporate \u2063more \u2062black voters into\u2063 a\u200c second majority-minority\u2063 district or something \u201cclose to \u2063it.\u201d The state\u2063 Legislature appealed\u2062 to the\u200c Supreme Court.<\/p>\n<p>The Supreme Court, in a\u2063 ruling that surprised many, \u200cdenied the \u200cstate\u2019s appeal and remanded the case back\u2064 to \u2064the three-judge panel\u200b with a mandate to issue a\u200c version of a reconfigured map by Oct. 1. The panel \u2063on Sept. 5\u200d reiterated\u2064 its rejection\u200b of Alabama\u2019s congressional map and ordered\u2062 that a special master\u2014and not state\u2064 lawmakers\u2014redraw one that includes two districts where\u200c black voters \u201chave an opportunity to elect\u2062 candidates of their choice.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"my-5\">In issuing its determination, the Supreme Court upheld the lower \u200ccourt\u2019s application of the 1986 <em>Thornburg \u200dv. Gingles<\/em> decision, which \u2063created a three-part test \u2064to evaluate claims brought under the\u200c VRA\u2019s Section \u200b2.<\/div>\n<div class=\"my-5\">Justice \u2064Brent\u200c Kavanaugh joined \u200bChief Justice John Roberts and the court\u2019s three <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/klobuchar-on-abortion-solution-for-so-many-things-is-abolishing-the-filibuster\/\" title=\"Klobuchar On Abortion: Solution For \u2018So Many\u2019 Things Is Abolishing The Filibuster\">liberal-leaning justices<\/a> in casting the deciding votes in upholding <em>Allen<\/em>, but also penned a concurrence with Justice \u2062Clarence Thomas\u2019s 48-page dissent. The conservative-leaning justice argued that even\u2063 if Congress once had the\u200b power to authorize race-based redistricting, \u201cthe authority to conduct race-based redistricting cannot\u200c extend indefinitely into the future.\u201d<\/div>\n<div class=\"my-5\">In \u200dhis concurrence, Judge Kavanaugh said \u2063because \u200dAlabama was not challenging \u201cracial gerrymandering\u201d directly in its appeal, he would \u201cnot consider it at this time\u201d in <em>Allen<\/em>, but left it open for consideration \u200bin\u200c a better-defined subsequent\u200d case.<\/div>\n<div>\n<figure style=\"width:600px\" class=\"alignnone\"><figcaption>Supreme Court \u2063Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh attend the State \u2063of the\u200c Union address \u200cin the chamber of the U.S. House of Representatives at the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 5, 2019.\u2063 (Doug\u200b Mills-Pool\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"my-5\">\n<h2>The &#8216;Kavanaugh \u2063Concurrence&#8217;<\/h2>\n<p>    The \u201cKavanaugh Concurrence\u201d could \u2062come into play when the Supreme Court on Oct. \u200d11 hears <a href=\"https:\/\/www.oyez.org\/cases\/2023\/22-807\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>Alexander v. South Carolina State Conference of the\u200c NAACP<\/em><\/a>, one \u200cof \u200dsix 2023 \u2062term cases set for oral arguments between Oct. \u20642\u201311.<br \/>\n\u200c\n  <\/div>\n<p>The \u2063South Carolina NAACP had spearheaded a lawsuit challenging the state\u2019s Republican-led Legislature\u2019s post-2020\u200d Census reapportionments in \u200bthree of\u2062 the state\u2019s seven congressional \u200ddistricts under the\u2063 VRA\u2019s \u2064Section 2.<\/p>\n<p>In January \u200c2023, a\u2062 three-judge \u200cfederal panel ruled\u200b that one of\u2063 the districts\u2063 was \u201can unconstitutional racial gerrymander\u201d under the VRA\u2019s \u2063Section 2, agreeing with \u2062the NAACP that state lawmakers deliberately moved tens of thousands of black voters into\u2062 different districts, making Congressional District 1 (CD 1), currently represented by Rep.\u2063 Nancy Mace (R-N.C.) \u2063a safe Republican seat.<\/p>\n<div class=\"my-5\">The South Carolina Legislature, with Senate President Sen. Thomas\u2064 Alexander (R-Pickens) as\u200b the lead plaintiff, appealed to the Supreme Court, which formally placed the case on its\u200d 2023 session docket\u2062 in \u200bJuly \u200bafter issuing its <em>Allen<\/em> decision in June.<\/div>\n<p>State lawmakers argue the three-judge panel unjustly assumed\u200b they \u2063acted in \u2064bad faith and \u200cracial enmity \u2064in drawing congressional districts but that that their\u2062 actions are legally justifiable political attempts\u2064 to ensure \u201ca stronger\u2064 Republican tilt\u201d in CD 1.<\/p>\n<p>The Legislature\u2019s GOP leadership claims the lower court ruling violates\u2064 the U.S. Constitution 14th Amendment\u2019s \u200dEqual Protection Clause and 15th Amendment, which holds the Constitution doesn&#8217;t permit race to be used as a\u2062 predominant \u200bfactor in drafting legislative \u2063district maps.<\/p>\n<div class=\"my-5\">South Carolina lawmakers contend if the January 2023 decision \u2062is upheld, as it was in <em>Allen<\/em>,\u200c it would put state legislatures nationwide in \u201can impossible bind\u201d between \u201cpursuing political goals and\u2064 traditional criteria\u201d in crafting \u2064legislative\u200c districts and requiring \u201cracial predominance\u201d be the dominant factor in redistricting.<\/div>\n<div style=\"margin-left:0;margin-right:0;max-width:1200px\">\n<figure style=\"width:640px;margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto\" class=\"alignnone\"><figcaption>U.S. House of \u2062Representatives in Washington on March 23, 2023. (Richard Moore\/The Epoch\u2062 Times)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"my-5\">\n<h2>Suits Could \u200bReshape 2024 \u200bCongressional Races<\/h2>\n<p>    \u2063 According to \u200dthe Brennan Center, \u200bas of\u200b July 2023, at least 74 lawsuits in 27 states were filed against post-2020 Census legislative maps as racially \u2062discriminatory gerrymanders with more than 45 pending or in appellate \u200bholds.\n  <\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"my-5\">The <a href=\"https:\/\/thearp.org\/litigation\/?c=14th-amendment&#038;resolved=false\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">American Redistricting\u2062 Project<\/a> maintains that the Alabama and South Carolina cases are two of at least eight active legal challenges to post-2020 Census congressional \u200ddistricts. The others\u2063 are in Georgia, Florida, Texas, Mississippi, \u200cArkansas, and Washington.<\/div>\n<p>There are \u2063also pending or stalled lawsuits against <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/anti-trump-impeachment-republican-adam-kinzinger-announces-retirement\/\" title=\"Anti-Trump Impeachment Republican Adam Kinzinger Announces Retirement\">congressional district maps<\/a> in Michigan, North Dakota, and Ohio, while state lawmakers in North Carolina, New York, Alaska, Maryland, and Louisiana are under court orders to refashion congressional and\/or state \u200clegislative districts by early 2024.<\/p>\n<p>The \u2062American \u200cRedistricting Project notes other lawsuits in at\u2063 least nine states that challenge state legislature boundaries could also result in rulings \u200dthat \u200caffect congressional district \u2064maps or\u2064 how they are crafted.<\/p>\n<p>Below is a roundup of six significant redistricting legal challenges.<\/p>\n<div style=\"margin-left:0;margin-right:0;max-width:1200px\">\n<figure style=\"width:640px;margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto\" class=\"alignnone\"><figcaption>Georgia Sen. John\u2064 Kennedy (R-Macon) introduces\u2063 a redistricting bill during a special\u2062 session at\u200b the \u2062state \u2063Capitol in Atlanta on Nov. 9, 2021. (Hyosub Shin\/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"my-5\">\n<h2>Georgia: <em>Pendergrass v. Raffensperger<\/em><\/h2>\n<p>    Proceedings began on Sept. 5 in Atlanta and are expected\u2064 to last\u2062 through Sept.\u2063 15\u200d in <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/01-2021-12-30-Complaint.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Pendergrass v. Raffensperger<\/a><\/em>, one of three federal \u2062challenges to the post-2020\u2063 Census congressional map adopted by Georgia\u2019s Republican-controlled Legislature \u200cin December 2021.\n  <\/div>\n<div class=\"my-5\"><em>Pendergrass<\/em> addresses congressional districts. The other \u200ctwo lawsuits, being heard simultaneously\u200c before U.S. \u2062District Judge Steve Jones, address alleged issues with state legislative districts under \u200dthe same VRA Section 2 \u200dclaim.<\/div>\n<div class=\"my-5\">In <em>Pendergrass<\/em>, the plaintiffs, \u2064all individual voters, \u200csay Georgia lawmakers committed\u200d a classic case\u200d of \u201cpacking\u201d and \u201ccracking\u201d when they allegedly \u200d\u201cpacked\u201d Atlanta metro-area CD 13 with Democrat voters, \u200bwhile \u201ccracking\u201d surrounding black communities \u2063up between four neighboring congressional districts.<\/div>\n<p>They say this\u2063 violates \u2064the\u2064 VRA Section\u200b 2\u2019s prohibition against the\u200d \u201cdenial or abridgement of the right of any citizen of the United\u2063 States to vote\u200d on account of race or color.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Plaintiffs sought to \u2062have the new maps blocked for the\u2062 midterms but in March 2022, Judge Jones \u200bdenied \u2063that motion despite maintaining the state had likely violated the VRA.<\/p>\n<p>Thus, the state\u2019s \u200d14 congressional\u200d district maps were retained for\u200d the midterm elections with Republicans winning nine of those elections.<\/p>\n<p>In\u2063 July 2023, Judge \u2064Jones\u200b denied the last of the state\u2019s \u2063motions to dismiss, sending the case to \u2064the \u2062now underway trial.<\/p>\n<p>Plaintiffs maintain the 2020 Census confirms that at least 500,000 black Americans moved to Georgia between 2010-20\u2014nearly half the state\u2019s 1 million\u200b growth in population.<\/p>\n<p>Using the Census \u200band demographics, plaintiffs say\u200c there should be at least one more black-majority congressional district on the west side of \u2063Atlanta and, across \u200bthe state, at least three more majority-black \u200dstate Senate districts and \u200bfive additional majority-black state house districts.<\/p>\n<div class=\"my-5\">The state argues plaintiffs haven\u2019t \u2062proved\u200d voters act the way \u2063they do because of race, arguing partisanship is a stronger\u2063 motivator, and say the lawsuits\u200d do not satisfy the conditions necessary for a \u200cSection 2 claim as laid out in <em>Gingles<\/em>.<\/div>\n<div>\n<figure style=\"width:600px\" class=\"alignnone\"><figcaption>Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signs a bill \u2064into law that establishes\u2064 the\u200c nation&#8217;s first Office \u2063of Election Crimes and Security at the Department of State specifically to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-pushed-doj-officials-to-back-claims-that-the-election-was-stolen-documents-show\/\" title=\"Trump Pushed DOJ Officials To Back Claims That The Election Was Stolen, Documents Show\">investigate voter fraud<\/a> at\u2062 Spring Hills\u200c in Fla., on \u2064April 25, 2022. (Patricia\u2062 Tolson\/The\u2064 Epoch Times)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"my-5\">\n<h2>Florida:\u00a0Black \u2062Voters Matter v. Byrd<\/h2>\n<p>    In a \u200bruling issued early Sept.\u2062 2, Florida\u200b Circuit\u2062 Court Judge J. Lee Marsh struck down the state\u2019s post 2020-Census reapportionment,\u200d ruling that congressional maps\u200c Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis had\u200d lobbied \u200cthe\u200c Republican-supermajority Legislature to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/in-depth-federal-state-lawsuits-seek-constitutional-clarity-on-racial-gerrymanders\/\" title=\"Federal and state lawsuits aim to clarify constitutionality of \"racial gerrymanders.\"\">adopt improperly diluted black voting power guaranteed<\/a> in the state\u2019s\u200c Constitution.\n  <\/div>\n<div class=\"my-5\">A separate federal challenge\u2063 to Florida\u2019s 2022 \u200dcongressional map is\u2064 still pending but all \u2063eyes\u2014for now\u2014are on the state\u2019s expected\u2063 appeal of Judge Marsh\u2019s ruling in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.democracydocket.com\/cases\/florida-congressional-redistricting-challenge-black-voters-matter\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>Black Voters \u2064Matter v. Byrd<\/em><\/a>.<\/div>\n<p>The lawsuit\u2014filed by\u200b Black Voters Matter, Equal Ground Education Fund, League of Women Voters of Florida (LWVF), Florida Rising Together, and\u2062 individual voters\u2014alleges that Florida\u2019s 28-district congressional map \u2064violates the \u2063state Constitution\u2019s Fair Districts Amendment, adopted by voters in a 201-0 statewide ballot \u2062referendum.<\/p>\n<p>Under the Fair Districts \u2062Amendment\u2019s \u201cnon-diminishment\u200b standard,\u201d districts cannot be\u2062 drawn \u2063in a manner that \u201cdiminishes\u201d the ability of \u200dminority \u200cvoters to elect their preferred candidate.<\/p>\n<p>Judge Marsh concluded that when the Legislature revamped maps during post-2020 Census \u200bredistricting, it essentially dissolved a congressional district long represented by black Democrats in violation of the Fair Districts\u2063 Amendment, which also requires \u2063lawmakers preserve a\u200b \u201chistorically performing minority\u2064 district\u201d in North Florida.<\/p>\n<p>In its 2020 Census, Florida gained more\u2062 than 2.7 million residents since 2010, boosting its population to 21.54 million and expanding its \u2062congressional delegation from \u200b27 to 28 beginning with 2022\u2019s midterms.<\/p>\n<p>In\u200c redrawing the existing 27 districts into a 28-district map in the 2022 legislative session, Mr.\u200d DeSantis rejected lawmaker\u2019s first \u2062map as an \u201cunconstitutional racial gerrymander\u201d and called \u200cthe Legislature into a special session where it adopted his map.<\/p>\n<p>The revised map took the state\u2019s \u200bCD 5\u2014a 200-mile swath of eight counties from\u200c Jacksonville west to Tallahassee held by a black Democrat since \u20641993, including\u2062 Rep.\u200c Al\u00a0 Lawson (D-Fla.) since 2017\u2014and made it into a Duval County-only district.<\/p>\n<p>Under the new map,\u200b a significant number \u2062of Democrat-registered \u2064voters in the former CD 5 were fragmented across several North Florida congressional districts dominated by Republicans.<\/p>\n<p>The revamped map\u2064 placed three-term Mr. Lawson\u200b into a 2022\u200b midterm reelection in CD 2 against incumbent\u2062 Rep.\u200d Neal Dunn\u200d (R-Fla.) in a district\u2062 that voted for former President Donald Trump over President \u200dJoe Biden\u200d by more\u2064 than 11 percentage points in 2020.<\/p>\n<p>Not surprisingly, \u200bMr. Dunn defeated Mr. Lawson by more than 20 percentage points and, under the new map, Republicans boosted their grip on\u2063 the state\u2019s congressional delegation\u2063 from 16-11 in 2020 to 20-8 in 2022.<\/p>\n<p>Several voting and civil rights\u2063 groups challenged the redrawn \u2063map under state law, claiming\u200d that the Fair Districts Amendment prohibits districts from\u200d being drawn to favor or disfavor \u2064a political party or candidate, and also prohibits the \u200c\u201cdiminishment \u2064of minority communities\u2019 ability to elect\u2063 a representative\u200c of \u200ctheir choice.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>But the state maintains that the Florida Fair\u200c District Amendment is an \u201cunconstitutional racial \u200bgerrymander\u201d that violates the 14th Amendment\u2019s Equal Protection Clause\u2064 by prioritizing \u200crace over \u201ccompactness\u201d in drawing CD 5.<\/p>\n<p>Judge Marsh in his Sept. 2 ruling, however, held that \u201c[p]laintiffs have shown that the enacted [map] results\u200b in the diminishment of black voters\u2019 ability to elect \u200btheir candidate\u200b of choice in violation of the Florida Constitution.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He noted \u2064during \u201cthe hearing on the parties\u2019 outstanding legal\u2064 issues, Defendants, Florida House and Florida Senate, conceded as much.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Under the judge\u2019s\u2064 order, the\u200b state is blocked from using\u2063 the 2022 maps in congressional elections, meaning that lawmakers \u2064must again redraw the state\u2019s \u206428 congressional districts.<\/p>\n<p>The state is expected to appeal and the case \u200bis likely to \u200dend up\u200c before the Florida Supreme Court, where Mr. DeSantis has appointed five of the\u200b seven-justice bench. All parties have consented to\u200c expedited proceedings.<\/p>\n<div style=\"margin-left:0;margin-right:0;max-width:1200px\">\n<figure style=\"width:640px;margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto\" class=\"alignnone\"><figcaption>Texas Gov. Greg\u200d Abbott\u200b talks about Senate Bill 1, also known as the \u2064election\u200c integrity bill \u2063in Tyler, Texas, on Sept. 7, 2021. (Marina \u200dFatina\/NTD)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"my-5\">\n<h2>Texas:\u00a0Petteway \u200dv. Galveston\u200d County<\/h2>\n<p>    While a\u200c federal lawsuit objecting to the Texas Legislature\u2019s post-2020 Census congressional district map remains delayed in pretrial discovery entanglements, a U.S. District Court judge officiated an Aug. 7\u201319 trial \u2063on lawsuits challenging how the Galveston County Commission divvied up its four county commission precincts.<br \/>\n\u2063\n  <\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"my-5\">U.S. \u200cSouthern District of Texas Judge Jeffrey\u200b V. Brown is expected to issue his decision by October on\u200d <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/crt\/case-document\/si-petteway-v-galveston\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Petteway v. Galveston County<\/a>,<\/em> a compilation of \u2064lawsuits that legal \u200cobservers say could potentially produce the most significant redistricting ruling since the Supreme Court\u2019s June 2023 <em>Allen<\/em> ruling.<\/div>\n<p>Among plaintiffs challenging the Galveston County commission map are the \u2064NAACP, \u2064League of United \u200dLatin\u200b American Citizens, the Southern Coalition for Social Justice, the Texas Civil Rights Project, and \u200dthe \u200bU.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), which rarely \u2062engages in redistricting lawsuits at\u2064 the county or\u2063 municipal level.<\/p>\n<p>In reconfiguring the county\u2019s\u2062 four county commission precincts during post-2020 Census reapportionment, the commission\u2063 agreed to defy long-established U.S. Fifth Circuit Court legal affirmations of \u201ccoalition\u201d districts to essentially induce lawsuits that, the county and state\u2063 believe, will \u200duphold \u2063the map\u2063 as constitutional.<\/p>\n<p>Defendants want to\u200d get the case before the current Fifth\u2062 Circuit,\u2062 which \u2063they\u200b believe is now poised to \u2064reverse decades of court-upheld race-centric reapportionment in Texas. \u2062Many believe the case will eventually be \u2062appealed and heard before the\u2063 U.S. Supreme Court, regardless of Judge Brown\u2019s ruling.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is a \u2064very \u200bimportant case,\u201d \u2062Judge \u200cBrown said when\u200c the two-week trial concluded \u2062on Aug. \u206219. The last post-trial filings are due on\u200b Sept. 15 with a ruling\u200c to follow.<\/p>\n<p>During the trial, the \u2063DOJ argued that the county maps clearly\u200c violate the VRA\u2019s Section\u200d 2 by purposely diluting the electoral efficacy of a long-established \u2064minority-majority commission \u2062district.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, another set of consolidated lawsuits \u200cbrought by individual Texans, the \u200bTexas NAACP, the \u2063DOJ, and others maintain the Legislature\u2019s post-2020 Census congressional district map fails to acknowledge that much of Texas 2010-20 growth was fueled by\u2063 newcomers of \u2062color.<\/p>\n<p>The suits \u2062argue Texas\u2019s Republican supermajority Legislature\u2019s 2021 map was crafted to \u201cbolster the party\u2019s dominance, giving white voters even \u2063greater\u200c control of political districts throughout the state\u201d and maintains that \u200bas many as four of the state\u2019s 38 congressional districts\u201424 held by the GOP\u2014violate the VRA\u2019s Section 2.<\/p>\n<div class=\"my-5\">The state \u200crefutes \u2062that its \u201crace blind\u201d map violates federal\u2063 or state\u2063 law. Texas has argued the VRA\u2019s \u200bSection 2 does not apply to redistricting, but\u2062 the Supreme Court\u2019s <em>Allen<\/em> ruling \u2062dashes that line of legal pursuit.<\/div>\n<p>Originally set\u200c for a September 2022 trial in El\u200c Paso, the federal congressional redistrict<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Gerrymandering for political gain is legal due to election consequences. However, if it undermines minority voting power, it becomes illegal. The debate lies in determining the constitutionality of &#8220;racial gerrymandering.&#8221;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":509,"featured_media":2024271,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[543],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2024270","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-epoch-times"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2024270","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/509"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2024270"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2024270\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2024271"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2024270"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2024270"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2024270"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}