Map

A federal court butted in where it didn't belong and ordered Ohio to use an illegal electoral map. Anatomy of a voting rights disaster.

Apparently, using an unconstitutional map is better than ordering the commission to produce a fair one or letting the state court manage this issue of state law. The decision defies the will of the voters, who passed a state constitutional amendment in 2015 to thwart gerrymandering and gamesmanship in redistricting—in the name of protecting the constitutional right to vote. This same cycle of judicial activism will likely repeat itself in 2024: Republicans will enact an illegal map, the Ohio Supreme Court will order them to produce a lawful one, and, eventually, a federal court can allow the state to use the unconstitutional map anyway. The idea that the Ohio Supreme Court or the commission would leave Ohio voters without a primary is pure speculation. To remedy that concern, the court said it was choosing the best option it could: a map that the state’s election machinery had begun to implement before the Ohio Supreme Court ruled it unlawful. Essentially, the federal court required the state to use an unconstitutional map.

As lawmakers consider their next move on redistricting, the overall cost has ballooned to nearly $1.8 million, according to an accounting through April 19.

As state lawmakers begin the veto session Monday, they received word the Congressional redistricting maps appr...

The so-called Ad Astra map split both counties, moving parts of them from the Third District to the Second. Other lawmakers representing Lyon County have not commented on the decision at this time. Schmidt did not address the judge’s concerns in a brief statement Monday afternoon.

By the numbers — Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday quickly signed into law the congressional map drawn by his own staff and passed by his allies in the Republican- ...

Newly filed court documents reveal that Rivera diverted more than half of his PDV USA income — $13 million — to three subcontractors in Miami who supposedly provided “international strategic consulting services” for the Venezuelan firm.” GETTING HARDER — “ As inflation rises, Floridians say it’s hard to pay their bills,” by Tampa Bay Times’ Natalie Weber: “Nearly half of Floridians included in a recent survey say inflation has impacted their ability to pay essential bills. select committee — part of an effort to force former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows to appear for an interview — suggest that some of Trump’s top allies in Congress were frequently present in meetings where a handful of strategies to prevent then-President-elect Joe Biden from taking office were discussed, including efforts to replace the leadership of the Justice Department with figures who would sow doubts about the legitimacy of the election. NEW FILINGS — “ GOP lawmakers were deeply involved in Trump plans to overturn election, new evidence suggests,” by POLITICO’s Kyle Cheney and Nicholas Wu: Deposition excerpts filed by the Jan 6. Nadd additionally questioned whether Simpson was involved in the “ghost candidate” scheme where third-party candidates were run in key Senate races as a way to siphon votes from Democrats. Nadd refused to say whether Joe Biden was fairly elected president, but the former Black Hawk helicopter pilot and Afghanistan veteran said he did recognize him as commander-in-chief. “It’s wrong, factually and morally, to accuse someone of being a groomer with no basis and evidence,” he said. The federal lawsuit was first filed back in March and the groups suing asked a three-judge panel to draw a new congressional map because Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Legislature were at odds with another at the time. One of the most controversial education proposals introduced this year, state Republicans advocated for the “individual freedom” bill as a way to ensure teachers and corporations remain objective when leading school lessons or employee trainings about race. About that other lawsuit — Meanwhile, lawyers representing Secretary of State Laurel Lee filed a motion in federal court on Friday asking that a previous lawsuit filed by Common Cause of Florida and Fair Districts Now and a group of voters be tossed out because the newly-approved map makes the case moot. Requested by the Republican governor, the two bills punishing Disney were made public on Tuesday and signed into law by DeSantis roughly 77 hours later following a special legislative session originally called to address congressional redistricting. Asking the judge — Several civil rights and voting groups filed a lawsuit the same day the governor signed off on the map, but there is skepticism that the court would take action ahead of this year’s election. Democrats have a lot to figure out, including whether they plan to mount a serious challenge in two potentially competitive South Florida seats now held by two freshmen Republicans. It looks like they are running out of time ahead of an election that may be the party’s last stand in Florida.

Wyandotte County District Judge Bill Klapper rules a new congressional map drawn by Kansas Republicans violates the state Constitution.

We look forward to the Attorney General’s appeal of this erroneous decision.” Republicans drew a map that divides the Kansas City metro along Interstate 70, separating a diverse community in the northern part of Wyandotte County from the 3rd District, making it more difficult for the state’s only Democrat in Congress, U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids, to win reelection. The ruling follows a consolidated trial for three lawsuits that were filed in response to a new congressional map passed by the Legislature this session. “The state is promptly appealing.” Federal courts previously handled these disputes, until a U.S. Supreme Court decision in 2019 determined federal courts should have no say on the topic. Klapper’s order, which Attorney General Derek Schmidt immediately appealed to the Kansas Supreme Court, blocks the state from preparing for the congressional election until a new map is drawn.

Three lawsuits were filed against the map which made changes to the boundaries of current congressional districts.

Three lawsuits were filed against the map which made changes to the boundaries of current congressional districts. Critics called revisions “gerrymandering,” saying it disenfranchised voters, particularly in the Kansas City area by splitting the city between two districts. The first deadline for this year’s election is June when candidates need to be filed to run. WICHITA, Kan. (KWCH) - Update: Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt notified the Wyandotte County District Court Monday afternoon that he is appealing its decision to strike down the new congressional map and order the Legislature to redraw the districts. This is unique cause it is at the state level where it’s never been done that way before,” said House Redistricting Committee Chair Rep. Chris Croft R-Overland Park. “There is some uniqueness to that process, but it’s still part of the overall process. The case argued that as part of Kansas’ constitution, the redistricting process prevents political gerrymandering and mitigating minority voters.

Bill Klapper ruled that the lines drawn by the GOP controlled Legislature violate the state constitution because it is racially and politically ...

In a statement, its legal director, Sharon Brett, said Klapper saw the map for “what it was — a deliberate attempt to silence the political voices of Democratic and minority Kansans.” “Still thrilled but this is just the first step in the process,” Johnson said. The Supreme Court’s review is likely to occur on a highly accelerated timeline. Klapper ordered the Legislature to redraw the map and prohibited officials from conducting elections under the unconstitutional map following a four-day trial earlier this month. If the ruling is ultimately upheld by the Kansas Supreme Court, it could upend the redistricting process in future decades. He referred to now-infamous comments in 2020 by Susan Wagle, then the Republican Senate president, who promised lawmakers could deliver four GOP congressional seats — remarks that attorneys for the voters brought up repeatedly at trial.

In the original complaint, attorneys argued the Legislature and DeSantis would likely not reach an agreement over congressional cartography. At that time, ...

But that took place three years and two election cycles after the lawmaker-approved maps were implemented. At that time, DeSantis had made clear he would veto maps crafted by legislative staff and passed in the House and Senate. “The Governor has repeatedly and inappropriately inserted himself into the congressional redistricting process, and with each intervention, the Legislature’s proposed maps have deviated further and further from the required constitutional standards,” the original complaint asserts.

District Court Judge Bill Klapper ruled the map — drawn by the Republican-dominated Kansas Legislature — violates the rights of residents in Lawrence and ...

“We are thankful that Judge Klapper saw this map for what it was — a deliberate attempt to silence the political voices of Democratic and minority Kansans,” Sharon Brett, legal director for the ACLU of Kansas, said in an email. They also argued that there is no standard in Kansas to prove what is or isn’t gerrymandering and that the challengers could not prove a state law was broken. The ruling is historic because the Kansas judicial system has never before considered political or racial gerrymandering. They argued the map was drawn that way to benefit Republican candidates. Klapper ordered the Legislature to redraw a legal map. “The Kansas Constitution, which recognizes citizens’ right to political equality, stands as a bulwark against such legislative misconduct.”

The Republican-drawn map intentionally split strongholds of Democratic and Black voters, a judge ruled. The State Supreme Court will review the decision.

Judge Klapper waxed lyrical in the first pages of his ruling, citing an anthem about the moral strength of the residents of “the flat plains of Kansas” and musing on the meaning of democracy. It’s the redrawing of the boundaries of congressional and state legislative districts. Should it be upheld, it would in all likelihood keep intact the existing partisan balance in the state’s House delegation, which consists of three Republicans and one Democrat. The final impact on the political balance in the closely divided House of Representatives, however, remains unknown. It happens every 10 years, after the census, to reflect changes in population. It was not immediately clear whether Republicans in the Kansas Legislature would take that path. They called Judge Klapper a partisan Democrat and said he had sided with Gov. Laura Kelly, a Democrat, “to usurp lawfully enacted maps approved by a supermajority of the people’s representatives.” The Republican-drawn map intentionally split strongholds of Democratic and Black voters, a judge ruled. A state court reinstated a Republican-leaning map in Ohio after a federal court intervened, and challenges in state courts to the Democratic gerrymander in New York and a new Republican gerrymander in Florida have yet to be resolved. The Kansas decision was the first in the state to reject a political map on partisan grounds. Ms. Kelly had vetoed the congressional map after Republican supermajorities in the State House and State Senate approved it in late January. The Legislature overrode the veto, and the A.C.L.U. of Kansas and the Campaign Legal Center sued in the district court, in Kansas City, to block the map. The Kansas ruling follows a flurry of state court decisions striking down partisan gerrymanders of congressional maps, largely in reaction to a 2019 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that barred federal courts from addressing the issue.

A Wyandotte County judge struck down a set of GOP-authored Congressional maps enacted earlier this year and ordered the legislature pass new lines.

“We are thankful that Judge Klapper saw this map for what it was – a deliberate attempt to silence the political voices of Democratic and minority Kansans,” Sharon Brett, the ACLU of Kansas' legal director, said in a statement. The ACLU of Kansas, one of several parties to bring the lawsuits, cheered the ruling in a statement, though they acknowledged the reality that it will now head to the Kansas Supreme Court. "When the Kansas Legislature violates the Kansas Constitution, including in its enactment of congressional redistricting legislation, Kansas courts have the power and duty to exercise judicial review and invalidate the Legislature’s unconstitutional action," Klapper wrote. But he invoked a speech from federal Judge Learned Hand in saying that "Liberty lies in the hearts of men and women." In his ruling, Klapper echoed that sentiment when he wrote the maps "intentionally and effectively dilutes minority votes in violation of the Kansas Constitution’s guarantee of equal protection." Wyandotte County District Court Judge Bill Klapper called the maps passed over the veto of Gov. Laura Kelly earlier this year to be "motivated at least in part by an intent to dilute minority voting strength" and said the state courts had the right to take up redistricting cases.

A Kansas judge struck down the state's new Republican-drawn congressional maps on Monday as an unconstitutional gerrymander, but conservative legislators ...

In 2019, the court found that the state constitution includes the right to an abortion — a hugely consequential decision given the erosion of abortion rights at the federal level. “We’re not really going to have time to have a bunch of political posturing. But the decision announced Monday, following a four-day trial earlier this month, is guaranteed to be appealed to the state Supreme Court. “It’s part of the process,” Croft said. It would be a critical decision coming as federal courts have stopped ruling against political gerrymandering. The Supreme Court’s ultimate decision will be one of its most momentous in recent years because the court may interpret the state constitution to prohibit political and racial gerrymandering.

The judge ruled the recently drawn map violates provisions in the state constitution related to free speech, voting and equal protection rights to favor ...

“We are thankful that Judge Klapper saw this map for what it was — a deliberate attempt to silence the political voices of Democratic and minority Kansans,” Sharon Brett, legal director for the ACLU of Kansas, said in an email. They also argued that there is no standard in Kansas to prove what is or isn’t gerrymandering and that the challengers could not prove a state law was broken. The ruling is historic because the Kansas judicial system has never before considered political or racial gerrymandering. They argued the map was drawn that way to benefit Republican candidates. Klapper ordered the Legislature to redraw a legal map. “The Kansas Constitution, which recognizes citizens’ right to political equality, stands as a bulwark against such legislative misconduct.”

In a major development in the congressional redistricting process in Concord, House Republicans are bringing forward a new proposed map that representatives ...

Rep. Ross Berry, a Manchester Republican who serves on the legislative committee drafting up new congressional districts, is releasing his own proposed map ...

The court named a special master in the case and has scheduled oral arguments for May 4. Berry’s map keeps eight of the state’s ten counties intact, as opposed to the current map which splits five counties. Instead, Berry is promoting a third plan, which seeks to equally divide the state by population, while keeping “major economic communities together.” Sununu’s office didn’t immediately return a request for comment. Sununu threatened to veto that map, citing concerns about making the districts less competitive. He finished a distant sixth.

A map that made Democratic Rep. Sharice Davids' district more Republican-leaning was thrown out, but an appeal is expected.

Any ruling, or implementation of a new map, would have to occur quickly. Klapper wrote the map “reflects a single-minded desire to maximize Republican advantage.” “How strong are Kansans? Strong enough to expect nothing more than a level playing field devoid of partisan advantage for one group of Kansans,” Klapper wrote.

It was the first time a court has declared that the Kansas Constitution prohibits political gerrymandering. The state is expected to appeal to the Kansas ...

The state constitution requires a decision by June 5. It was the first time a court has declared that the Kansas Constitution prohibits political gerrymandering. But the state’s attorneys also argued that nothing in the Kansas Constitution allows state courts — rather than federal courts — to review congressional maps or to consider political gerrymandering as an issue. It was the first time a court has declared that the Kansas Constitution prohibits political gerrymandering. The state argued that Davids’ district emerged slightly more competitive than it had been. “Strong enough to expect nothing more than a level playing field devoid of partisan advantage for one group of Kansans. Strong enough for the merits of the issue to be the deciding factor.

Judge says the map is a Republican gerrymander in violation of State Constitution. Case likely headed to State Supreme Court.

The ruling is expected to be appealed to the Kansas Supreme Court. June 1 is the filing deadline for the state's August 2 primary. A Kansas judge has thrown out the state's enacted congressional map, calling it an "intentional, effective pro-Republican gerrymander that systematically dilutes the votes of Democratic Kansans." Per Politico, "it was the first time a court has declared that the Kansas Constitution prohibits political gerrymandering." The prior map became law in February when the Republican-controlled Legislature overrode the veto of Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly.

It was the first time a court has declared that the Kansas Constitution prohibits political gerrymandering. Kansas State Capitol Building.

The state’s attorneys also argued that nothing in the Kansas Constitution allows state courts — rather than federal courts — to review congressional maps or to consider political gerrymandering as an issue. Klapper ruled in three consolidated lawsuits filed by a voting rights group, Loud Light, and 20 voters in the Kansas City and Lawrence areas. State Rep. Barbara Ballard, a Lawrence Democrat, jumped up and down with joy in a Statehouse elevator when she learned of the ruling. The state argued that Davids’ district emerged slightly more competitive than it had been. It was the first time a court has declared that the Kansas Constitution prohibits political gerrymandering. He ordered legislators to draft another map after declaring that the challenged one not only was too partisan but diluted minority voters’ political clout.

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) – A Wyandotte County judge has ruled that a congressional district map is unconstitutional. It split Wyandotte County in half and puts ...