How will Supreme Court voting rights ruling shape future redistricting?
A U.S. Supreme Court ruling declaring Louisiana's recent congressional map unconstitutional is not expected to trigger immediate changes to congressional districts in Pennsylvania or New Jersey, but experts say it may have broad implications for voters and future redistricting efforts.
Local voters reacted to the decision, which struck down Louisiana's redrawing of its map to create a second majority Black district.
#politics #foryou #supremecourt #fyp https://6abc.com/post/how-will-supreme-court-voting-rights-ruling-shape-future-redistricting/18999047/
It's a landmark decision today from the U.S. Supreme Court that could have an impact on
the Civil Rights Era Voting Rights Act.
The court's conservative majority ruled that a Louisiana congressional map was unconstitutionally
drawn because it relied on race.
In the 6-3 decision, the justices told states they can almost never consider race when drawing
maps to comply with Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act.
That act was enacted to protect minority voters who long face discrimination in elections.
The decision means Louisiana will need to redraw its map.
Other states could try to do so as well, and that might include Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
For more on that, let's bring in Action News reporter Trish Hartman.
Trish, you talked to experts about what this could mean for our region.
That's right, Rick.
The experts that we spoke with don't expect immediate challenges to congressional maps
in Pennsylvania or New Jersey, but they say this ruling could still have widespread impacts
for voters down the road.
What I am hoping is that it will cause people to work even harder to get people out to vote.
Local voters reacting to today's Supreme Court ruling that Louisiana's recent redrawing of
its congressional map that created a second black majority district was unconstitutional.
Rutgers Law professor Stacey Hawkins was not surprised at the 6-3 decision.
I think that the Supreme Court pretty much foreshadowed this, if not, you know, going
all the way back to 2013 when they gutted the first provision of the Voting Rights Act.
At the heart of this decision, Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which prohibits
voting practices or procedures that discriminate on the basis of race.
Civil rights groups, including the NAACP, are calling this ruling a devastating blow
for voting rights.
Lauren Christella, CEO of the Committee of Seventy, says Pennsylvania has no plans to
touch congressional maps until 2031, but she says this ruling could impact redistricting
everywhere.
Right now, it is a very partisan process that will take place in the next cycle.
It will all depend on who the chair of that redistricting commission is.
We don't know who that will be, we don't know if they'll be fair-minded, and the legislature
picks them.
Hawkins pointed to districts like Pennsylvania's third.
That seat is up for grabs.
Candidates met today for a debate ahead of the May primary.
Certainly, Dwight Evans' seat, right, you know, may owe its, you know, representation
to being a minority, a majority district.
And so I think anyone who is currently serving in a majority-minority district really has
their seat threatened.
Now, a White House spokesperson called this ruling, quote, a complete and total victory
for American voters, saying this decision protects voting rights from abuse of the Voting
Rights Act.
Now, Louisiana's primary is about two weeks away, and state officials there are now scrambling
to figure out what this decision means for that upcoming election.
Live in Camden, New Jersey, Trish Hartman, Channel 6 Action News.
Yeah, certainly a lot to sort out there, Trish, thank you.