Category Archives: Voting Rights

On this day in Supreme Court History—February 27, 1922: The Court Strikes Down a Challenge to the 19th Amendment

On February 27, 1922, the United States Supreme Court unanimously dismissed a challenge to the 19thAmendment to the United States Constitution. Passed by Congress in 1919 and ratified in 1920, the 19th Amendment guaranteed women the right to vote. The text of the amendment reads as follows: “The right of citizens of the United States … Continue reading On this day in Supreme Court History—February 27, 1922: The Court Strikes Down a Challenge to the 19th Amendment

End of the 2017-18 Term: Race and Redistricting

During Justice Kennedy’s last weeks at the Supreme Court, the Court decided a number of important cases, many of them 5-4. We’ve already posted about many of them, including the partisan gerrymandering cases, Janus v. AFSCME (the big union fees case), and the internet taxation case. We’ll post about the rest over the next few … Continue reading End of the 2017-18 Term: Race and Redistricting

Opinions: Partisan Gerrymandering – Still Unresolved

The Court issued opinions in its two partisan gerrymandering cases — Gill v. Whitford and Benisek v. Lamone — on the same day near the end of the Term. Although these decisions were highly anticipated, the opinions themselves shed virtually no new light on either the justiciability of partisan gerrymandering claims or on the standard … Continue reading Opinions: Partisan Gerrymandering – Still Unresolved

Gill v. Whitford Oral Argument Preview

Next Tuesday the Court will hear oral arguments in Gill v. Whitford, a controversial and widely anticipated case about partisan gerrymandering in Wisconsin. In addition to reviewing the district court’s analysis and holding, the Court will have to answer the basic question of whether partisan gerrymandering cases even present issues that courts are able to … Continue reading Gill v. Whitford Oral Argument Preview

What Happened in Evenwel?

The big surprise from Monday’s Supreme Court decision in Evenwel v. Abbott was not how the Court ruled, but that it was unanimous in doing so. The case involved the way to measure population in applying the Court’s longstanding “one person one vote” standard when drawing voter districts. The basic question: should voting districts be … Continue reading What Happened in Evenwel?