Supreme Court rules against Republicans in Virginia dispute over use of race in drawing election map
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Source: USA today
WASHINGTON – A conservative Supreme Court gave Democrats a major victory over Republicans in Virginia Monday by spurning the GOP's defense of election maps drawn with both racial and partisan overtones.
The justices ruled that the Republican-controlled House of Delegates lacked the authority to challenge a federal district court decision striking down the maps after the state's Democratic attorney general refused to do so.
The decision leaves intact this month's primary elections in Virginia, where voters go to the polls in odd-numbered years to elect state officials. Some races were held in districts redrawn after the district court said Republicans' maps were designed to dilute African Americans' voting strength.
While the high court gave Democrats a victory, it did not take sides on the threshold issue: whether the maps followed or violated the Voting Rights Act, which says minorities must be given a chance to elect lawmakers of their choice. That requires a balancing act: Districts should have enough minority voters but not too many, lest their votes are diluted in surrounding areas.
Read more: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2019/06/17/race-and-politics-supreme-court-rules-virginia-election-districts/1419708001/
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