Cooper v. Harris
| Cooper v. Harris | |
|---|---|
|
| |
| Argued December 5, 2016 Decided May 22, 2017 | |
| Full case name | Roy Cooper, Governor of North Carolina, et al., appellants vs. David Harris, et al. |
| Docket nos. | 15-1262 |
| Citations | |
| Prior history | Appeal from the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina |
| Holding | |
| North Carolina relied too heavily on race in redrawing two Congressional districts after the 2010 Census (M.D.N.C. affirmed) | |
| Court membership | |
| |
| Case opinions | |
| Majority | Kagan, joined by Thomas, Ginsburg, Breyer, and Sotomayor |
| Concurrence | Thomas |
| Concur/dissent | Alito, joined by Roberts and Kennedy |
| Gorsuch took no part in the consideration or decision of the case. | |
| Laws applied | |
|
U.S. Const. amend. XIV Voting Rights Act of 1965 | |
Cooper v. Harris, 581 U.S. ___ (2017), is a case by the Supreme Court of the United States in which the Court ruled 5–3 that the North Carolina General Assembly used race too heavily in re-drawing two Congressional districts following the 2010 Census.[1][2]
At issue in particular were the 1st and 12th districts. Voters in Mecklenburg County asserted that the 1st was "akin to a Rorschach ink blot," and that the 12th, though 120 miles long, at times "averag[ed] only a few miles wide." The 12th had already been a part of several cases that went to the Supreme Court.[3][4]
The state argued that the African-American population of the districts was increased in order to comply with the Voting Rights Act of 1965, but the Court found that argument "does not withstand strict scrutiny" for the 1st district, as its African-American population had previously been less than a majority of its voters, yet African-Americans' "preferred candidates scored consistent victories."[5]
The five concurring justices in the Supreme Court's decision were Elena Kagan, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor, and Clarence Thomas.[6] The three dissenting justices were Chief Justice John Roberts, Samuel Alito, and Anthony Kennedy, all of whom issued a partial dissent arguing that they thought one of the districts was constitutional.[7] Neil Gorsuch did not take part in the case, which was argued before he was confirmed to the Supreme Court.[7]
References
- ↑ Opinion of the Court
- ↑ Liptak, Adam (May 22, 2017). "Supreme Court Strikes Down 2 North Carolina Congressional Districts". The New York Times.
- ↑ Blythe, Anne (May 22, 2017). "U.S. Supreme Court agrees NC lawmakers created illegal congressional district maps in 2011". The Charlotte Observer.
- ↑ North Carolina's 12th district was the subject of Shaw v. Reno, 509 U.S. 630 (1993), Hunt v. Cromartie, 526 U.S. 541 (1999), and Easley v. Cromartie, 532 U.S. 234 (2001).
- ↑ Bland, Scott (May 22, 2017). "Supreme Court rules North Carolina congressional districts unconstitutional". Politico.
- ↑ Barnes, Robert (22 May 2017). "Supreme Court rules race improperly dominated N.C. redistricting efforts". Washington Post. Retrieved 22 May 2017.
- 1 2 Stohr, Greg (22 May 2017). "Supreme Court Rejects North Carolina Congressional Districts". Bloomberg News. Retrieved 22 May 2017.
External links
- Opinion of the Supreme Court in this case (written by Justice Kagan)