Do State Legislators Have Standing to Appeal District Court Racial Gerrymandering Ruling?

This Post is by Jakob Stalnaker on the State OF Elections, Election Law Society at William & Mary Law School.

In June 2018, in a Case called Bethune-Hill v. Virginia State Board of Elections, a Federal District Court in Richmond struck 11 Districts as Unconstitutional Racial Gerrymanders. Because the Remedial Map will likely impact the Balance of Power in the State Legislature, its Majority Members would like to Appeal the District Court Ruling.

The Original Defendant in this Ccase was the Virginia State Board of Elections. The Virginia House of Delegates and the Speaker of the House of Delegates were Permitted as Defendant-Intervenors in the Original Litigation. The trouble is, Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring Declined to Appeal the Ruling on Behalf of the Virginia State Board of Elections. The Virginia House of Delegates and Speaker Kirk Cox, Appealed the Ruling as Defendant-Intervenors.

On November 13th, the U.S. Supreme Court Agreed to hear the Appeal. The Court asked the Parties to Brief the following Question: does the Virginia House of Delegates have Standing to bring the Appeal?

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