christiefan915
Catalyst
I love The Notorious RBG! It did surprise me, though, to see an 8-0 opinion on this. Then again Thomas's concurrence was sort of damning with faint praise.
The Supreme Court's 8-0 unanimous ruling to allow states to draw their legislative districts according to total population drew praise Monday from Asian American and Pacific Islander groups.
In affirming a lower court's ruling in Evenwel v. Abbott, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg writing for the court said there was no reason to constitutionally require that voter eligibility, instead of the total number of residents, be used for redistricting. The lawsuit, brought by two voters against the state of Texas, had strong implications for the entire nation, particularly states with significant minority populations ineligible to vote because they are legal permanent residents or haven't turned 18.
A mandate that local and state districts be decided based on the number of registered or eligible voters could have excluded 45 percent of the Asian-American population and between 30 and 40 percent of the Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander population from the base used to establish district boundaries, advocates say.
"Everyone counts in our nation's democratic process," Christopher Kang, national director of the National Council of Asian Pacific Americans, said in a statement. "The lives of every individual in the United States — whether or not they are eligible to vote — are affected by government policies and therefore deserve representation."
Mee Moua, president and executive director of Asian Americans Advancing Justice AAJC, also welcomed news of the Supreme Court's ruling. "This is a huge win for our democracy and today's decision ensures that all members of society are represented by our government," Moua said in a statement.
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-a...ise-scotus-decision-uphold-one-person-n550596
The Supreme Court's 8-0 unanimous ruling to allow states to draw their legislative districts according to total population drew praise Monday from Asian American and Pacific Islander groups.
In affirming a lower court's ruling in Evenwel v. Abbott, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg writing for the court said there was no reason to constitutionally require that voter eligibility, instead of the total number of residents, be used for redistricting. The lawsuit, brought by two voters against the state of Texas, had strong implications for the entire nation, particularly states with significant minority populations ineligible to vote because they are legal permanent residents or haven't turned 18.
A mandate that local and state districts be decided based on the number of registered or eligible voters could have excluded 45 percent of the Asian-American population and between 30 and 40 percent of the Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander population from the base used to establish district boundaries, advocates say.
"Everyone counts in our nation's democratic process," Christopher Kang, national director of the National Council of Asian Pacific Americans, said in a statement. "The lives of every individual in the United States — whether or not they are eligible to vote — are affected by government policies and therefore deserve representation."
Mee Moua, president and executive director of Asian Americans Advancing Justice AAJC, also welcomed news of the Supreme Court's ruling. "This is a huge win for our democracy and today's decision ensures that all members of society are represented by our government," Moua said in a statement.
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-a...ise-scotus-decision-uphold-one-person-n550596
