Epoch Times

The Supreme Court seems poised to strike down race-based redistricting as unconstitutional, or at least rein in the practice, court experts told The Epoch Times.

The outcome of the high-profile racial gerrymandering case of Louisiana v. Callais could have an impact on the balance of power in the federal legislative branch. Gerrymandering is the manipulation of electoral district boundaries to favor a particular party or constituency.

Currently, Republicans maintain a razor-thin majority over Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives. The congressional seat at the heart of the litigation is currently held by Rep. Cleo Fields (D-La.).

On Oct. 15, the high court will hear the case concerning whether a lower court-ordered creation of a second black-majority congressional district in Louisiana was constitutional.

The Supreme Court already heard the case on March 24 but declined to issue a ruling. Instead, it wanted parties to file more briefs on whether a key provision of the federal Voting Rights Act itself—Section 2—violated two constitutional amendments.
Arguments in March focused on whether a version of Louisiana’s congressional map violated Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. Section 2 prohibits voting practices or procedures that discriminate based on race, color, or membership in a large language-minority group such as American Indian, Asian American, Alaskan Native, or American Hispanic.

Courts have held that in certain circumstances, the 1965 Voting Rights Act permits states to take race into account when drawing electoral boundaries, but electoral maps drawn explicitly based on race are unconstitutional. The statute has been interpreted by the courts to forbid racial gerrymandering when it dilutes minority voting power.

In June 2023, the Supreme Court voted 5–4 to strike down Alabama’s electoral map for congressional elections in Allen v. Milligan, ruling that it was racially discriminatory and violated Section 2.

Alabama had defended its redrawn electoral map, arguing the Voting Rights Act doesn’t require the state to redraw districts to assure black representation in the state’s U.S. House delegation.

An Oct. 8 report published by two activist groups—Fair Fight Action and Black Voters Matter Fund—suggests that if the Supreme Court invalidates Section 2, Republicans could gain as many as 19 seats in the House.

If Section 2 is invalidated, 25 to 30 percent of the members of the Congressional Black Caucus and 11 percent of the members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus could lose their seats, said the report.

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