League of Women Voters of South Carolina v. Alexander
What's at Stake
This case involves a state constitutional challenge to South Carolina’s 2022 congressional redistricting plan, which legislators admit was drawn to entrench a 6-1 Republican majority in the state’s federal delegation. Plaintiff the League of Women Voters of South Carolina has asked the state’s Supreme Court to conclude that the congressional map is an unlawful partisan gerrymander that violates the state constitution.
Summary
South Carolina’s congressional map is a “political gerrymander.” Those were the words of Justice Samuel Alito, who ruled in Alexander v. South Carolina State Conference of the NAACP, that plaintiffs in that case fell short of establishing that it was race, not partisan discrimination, that drove the map’s line drawing.
This case asks the South Carolina Supreme Court to apply that state’s own constitution to conclude that the 2022 congressional map is not just a partisan gerrymander, but unlawful as well. That state's constitution protects against intentional distortion of democracy by guaranteeing “free and open” elections and an “equal right to elect officers” for all qualified South Carolinians. Other states (like Kentucky, Pennsylvania, and New Mexico), have ruled that partisan gerrymandering violates voters’ rights under similar provisions. Representing the League of Women Voters of South Carolina -- a nonpartisan organization -- we have urged the South Carolina Supreme Court to take up the case under its original jurisdiction and do the same.
Legal Documents
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11/22/2024
Opening Brief for Petitioner -
10/03/2024
Order Granting Request for Original Jurisdiction -
08/28/2024
Senate Respondents' Return to Petition for Original Jurisdiction -
07/29/2024
Petition for Original Jurisdiction -
07/29/2024
Complaint
Date Filed: 11/22/2024
Affiliate: South Carolina
Date Filed: 10/03/2024
Affiliate: South Carolina
Date Filed: 08/28/2024
Affiliate: South Carolina
Date Filed: 07/29/2024
Affiliate: South Carolina
Date Filed: 07/29/2024
Affiliate: South Carolina
Press Releases
ACLU and LWV File Lawsuit Against Partisan Gerrymandering of South Carolina’s Congressional Districts