The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the use of total population numbers for State and Local redistricting today in a unanimous 8-0 decision in Evenwel et al v Abbott.
Under the one-person, one-vote principle, jurisdictions must design Legislative Districts with equal populations.
In the context of State and Local Legislative districting, States may deviate somewhat from perfect population equality to accommodate traditional districting objectives.
Where the maximum population deviation between the largest and smallest district is less than 10%, a State or Local Legislative map presumptively complies with the one-person, one-vote rule.
Texas, like all other States, uses total-population numbers from the decennial census when drawing Legislative Districts. After the 2010 census, Texas adopted a State Senate map that has a maximum total population deviation of 8.04%, safely within the presumptively permissible 10% range. However, measured by a voter-population baseline, eligible voters or registered voters, the map’s maximum population deviation exceeds 40%. Appellants, who live in Texas Senate districts with particularly large eligible- and registered-voter populations, filed suit against the Texas Governor and Secretary of State. Basing apportionment on total population, appellants contended, dilutes their votes in relation to voters in other Senate districts, in violation of the one-person, one-vote principle of the Equal Protection Clause.
Appellants sought an injunction barring use of the existing Senate map in favor of a map that would equalize the voter population in each district. A three-judge District Court dismissed the complaint for failure to state a claim on which relief could be granted.
Court Held:
As constitutional history, precedent, and practice demonstrate, a State or locality may draw its legislative districts based on total population. Constitutional history shows that, at the time of the founding, the Framers endorsed allocating House seats to States based on total population. Debating what would become the Fourteenth Amendment, Congress reconsidered the proper basis for apportioning House seats. Retaining the total-population rule, Congress rejected proposals to allocate House seats to States on the basis of voter population.
The only thing settled constitutionally now is that the states also are not required to divide up districts by using the voting population to be assigned to each, making them equal. Should a state do it that way, the opinion seems to say, the Court will then face that issue.
CLICK HERE to read the 53 page (PDF) decision.
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