Supreme Court rules state courts can review elections

Supreme Court elections review ruling overview: 

• Who: The US Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that the elections clause of the Constitution does not give state lawmakers free rein to set rules for federal elections. 
• Why: The decision stems from a case involving a challenge of the redrawing of district maps in the state of North Carolina. 
• Where: The case is before the Supreme Court of the United States

The Supreme Court voted 6-3 earlier this week that the elections clause of the Constitution does not grant state lawmakers free reign to set rules for federal elections.

The decision was being closely watched by voting rights advocates involved in an elections case involving Republicans in the North Carolina legislature seeking to reinstate their voter maps, reports Law360. 

The high court maintained that states have long held the ability to review state legislative actions, meanwhile, and that the Constitution’s election clause “does not carve out an exception to that fundamental principle.” 

“When state legislatures prescribe the rules concerning federal elections, they remain subject to the ordinary exercise of state judicial review,” Chief Justice John Roberts wrote, for the majority. 

The North Carolina Supreme Court ruled earlier this year that courts are not allowed to get in the way of the legislative process of redistricting, in a decision that undid an earlier opinion used for the basis of the appeal, reports Law360. 

Voting rights activists challenge district maps redrawn by North Carolina General Assembly

The case in question originated in 2021, at which time the North Carolina General Assembly redrew the district maps for both the U.S. House of Representatives and both houses of the North Carolina state legislature. 

The district maps were challenged by in excess of two dozen voters and voting rights activists, who argued the drawings were unconstitutional by allegedly being skewed to help Republicans, reports Law360. 

While the maps were upheld by a state court judge,  the North Carolina Supreme Court would later reverse the ruling in a February 2021 decision that found the maps violated a constitutional right to equal voting power. 

Lawmakers were ultimately ordered by the North Carolina Supreme Court to redraw the maps in the ruling, which led to the current appeal, reports Law360. 

In other news involving elections, a class action lawsuit was filed against Fox News Network, its owner Rupert Murdoch, his son Lachlan, and other Fox Corp. directors over claims they harmed investors by knowingly promoting a false narrative about the 2020 presidential election. 

Do you agree with the Supreme Court’s decision? Let us know in the comments! 

The Supreme Court elections review case is Moore, et al. v. Harper, et al., Case No. 21-1271, in the Supreme Court of the United States.

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