Supreme Court remands partisan gerrymandering case from North Carolina
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The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday remanded a partisan gerrymandering case from North Carolina that had alleged Republicans drew federal congressional district lines to give themselves an advantage.
The Supreme Court ordered a federal court in North Carolina to reconsider whether the plaintiffs had standing in light of its decision earlier this month in a partisan gerrymandering case from Wisconsin, Gill v. Whitford. The Washington Post has coverage.
In the Wisconsin case, the Supreme Court had ruled the plaintiffs did not establish standing by claiming statewide injury to Democrats. The court had remanded the case to give the plaintiffs a chance to prove individual harm.
The North Carolina case is Rucho v. Common Cause. Under the North Carolina remap, Republican candidates prevailed in 10 of the state’s 13 congressional districts despite receiving only 53.22 percent of the statewide vote.
The plaintiffs challenging the remap are Common Cause, the North Carolina Democratic Party and individual plaintiffs, including at least one voter from each of the 13 congressional districts. In a press release, leaders of Common Cause and Common Cause North Carolina said they are confident that the plaintiffs have standing, and confident that their victory in the lower courts will ultimately be affirmed.
