Thread
Mark Joseph Stern
@mjs_DC

NEW: By a 6–3 vote, the Supreme Court halts a lower court order that had struck down Louisiana's racial gerrymander. All three liberals dissent.

A federal judge found that Louisiana's new congressional map diluted the votes of racial minorities in violation of the Voting Rights Act, and the 5th Circuit declined to halt that ruling. Now the Supreme Court has stepped in to put the ruling on hold.

Although nearly a third of Louisiana's population is Black, Republicans' new congressional map gives Black voters control over just one of six congressional districts.

The Supreme Court has now effectively ensured that this map will remain in place for the 2022 elections.

The new map, which the Supreme Court just reinstated, packs Black voters into a single district, diluting their political power in violation of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. But the far-right justices have effectively repealed that provision already.

SCOTUS Just Blew Up the Voting Rights Act’s Ban on Racial Gerrymandering

Here's a link to the order; the liberal justices noted their dissents but did not write. https://supremecourt.gov/orders/courtorders/062822zr1_9ol1.pdf


The majority also granted cert and will hold the case until it formally eviscerates the Voting Rights Act's ban on racial gerrymandering next term.

Remember: The Supreme Court is not just *allowing* states to pass racial gerrymanders; it's also *prohibiting* states from increasing representation for racial minorities. It claims that increasing Black voting power violates the equal protection clause.

The Supreme Court’s Astonishing, Inexplicable Blow to the Voting Rights Act in Wisconsin

Here is the upshot of the Supreme Court's shadow docket decisions on the Voting Rights Act: The far-right majority has effectively struck down the ban on racial gerrymandering without full briefing or oral arguments, on the basis of a future ruling that it has not yet issued.