US Supreme Court indicates it may sidestep major elections ruling
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[March 03, 2023]
By Andrew Chung
(Reuters) -The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday signaled it may sidestep a
ruling in a major case involving a Republican bid to give state
legislatures far more power over federal elections by limiting the
ability of state courts to review their actions.
The North Carolina Supreme Court last month granted a request by
Republican state legislators to revisit its ruling last year against a
map they devised of the state's 14 U.S. House of Representatives
districts. In light of that, the U.S. Supreme Court asked the various
parties in the case including the U.S. Justice Department to submit
briefs offering views on the effect of the state court's actions on the
justices' jurisdiction over the matter.
The state Supreme Court blocked the Republican map as unlawfully biased
against Democratic voters. But the court has undergone a change in its
ideological makeup - now holding a majority of Republican judges instead
of Democratic judges. That could lead to a reversal of last year's
ruling.
The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the dispute in December
but has not issued a ruling in the high-profile case.
The justices' order on Thursday cited a federal law giving it
jurisdiction over final judgments issued by state supreme courts. If the
justices decide that they no longer have jurisdiction, they could
dismiss the case.
Members of the state Supreme Court are elected by voters in North
Carolina. In November's elections, it flipped from a 4-3 Democratic
majority to a 5-2 Republican majority. That court is due to rehear the
case this month.
In the high-profile case, the Republican legislators had urged the U.S.
Supreme Court to embrace a once-marginal legal theory now embraced by
many U.S. conservatives that would remove any role of state courts and
state constitutions in regulating presidential and congressional
elections.
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People walk across the plaza to enter
the U.S. Supreme Court building on the first day of the court's new
term in Washington, U.S. October 3, 2022. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
The Supreme Court's conservative majority appeared inclined to rule
in favor of the Republicans and limit state judicial power to
overrule voting policies crafted by state politicians, though
perhaps without going as far as the lawmakers wanted. Liberal
justices painted the challenge as a threat to American democratic
norms.
The legal theory in the case, called the "independent state
legislature" doctrine, is based in part on the U.S. Constitution's
statement that the "times, places and manner" of federal elections
"shall be prescribed in each state by the legislature thereof."
In their appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, the North Carolina
Republicans contended that the state court usurped the state General
Assembly's authority under that provision to regulate federal
elections.
The North Carolina Supreme Court struck down the map in February
2022, concluding that the way the districts were crafted was
intentionally biased against Democrats, diluting their "fundamental
right to equal voting power."
A lower state court then rejected a redrawn map submitted by the
legislature and instead adopted a new one drawn by a bipartisan
group of experts. That map was in use during the November U.S.
congressional elections.
Democratic President Joe Biden's administration argued against the
Republican position when the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in
the case.
(Reporting by Andrew Chung in New York and John Kruzel in
Washington; Editing by Will Dunham)
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