Supreme Court Overturns Lower Court Ruling on South Carolina Gerrymandering, Favoring GOP

The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the congressional district boundaries in South Carolina, overturning a lower court decision that invalidated them as an unlawful racial gerrymander.

This decision marks a significant victory for Republican mapmakers who contended that politics, not race, was the primary factor in drawing the district lines.

Supreme Court Decision

In a 6-3 ruling, the Supreme Court reversed a decision by a three-judge district court panel, which had previously found that South Carolina’s GOP lawmakers improperly used race in designing Congressional District 1.

The majority opinion, written by Justice Samuel Alito, stated that the lower court’s findings were “clearly erroneous.”

South Carolina Republicans and the state chapter of the NAACP had urged the Supreme Court to issue a ruling by January to ensure clarity for the 2024 elections.

However, as the months passed without a decision, GOP officials requested a pause on the district court’s January 2023 decision invalidating the lines.

This request was granted in March, allowing the contested map to be used for the upcoming congressional contests, with statewide primaries set for June 11.

Background of South Carolina’s Congressional District 1

Located along South Carolina’s southeastern coast and anchored in Charleston County, Congressional District 1 has historically leaned Republican.

Voters elected Republicans to the House from 1980 to 2016, with Democrat Joe Cunningham winning an upset victory in 2018.

Republican Rep. Nancy Mace then claimed the seat in the following election.

In the 2021 redistricting process, GOP lawmakers aimed to strengthen the district’s Republican tilt by moving over 140,000 residents out of the district and into Congressional District 6, represented by Democratic Rep. Jim Clyburn.

The new voting map was enacted in January 2022, and Mace won reelection that November by a larger margin than in her previous race.

However, the NAACP’s South Carolina chapter and a voter in the district challenged the new boundaries, alleging racial gerrymandering.

What is Gerrymandering?

Gerrymandering is the practice of drawing electoral district boundaries to favor one party or group over another.

It can be done based on political affiliation, known as partisan gerrymandering, or based on race, known as racial gerrymandering.

The goal is to create districts that maximize the voting power of the favored party or group while minimizing the influence of opponents.

This practice can lead to oddly shaped districts and is often contested in courts for fairness and legality.

Legal Challenge and Court Findings

The three-judge panel that initially heard the case concluded that GOP lawmakers used racial targets and predominantly sorted voters by race to achieve a partisan outcome.

The panel found that the mapmakers set a target of 17% Black voting-age population in Congressional District 1 and moved more than 30,000 Black residents into Congressional District 6 to strengthen the Republican position in District 1.

As a result, the court blocked the state from holding elections with the GOP-drawn map for Congressional District 1.

South Carolina Republicans appealed the decision, arguing that the lower court failed to separate racial considerations from political strategy.

They contended that political motivations were the primary factor, which is permissible under a 2019 Supreme Court ruling that federal courts cannot adjudicate claims of partisan gerrymandering.

Implications for Future Elections

The Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the South Carolina congressional map is the latest in a series of redistricting battles that have reached the high court following the 2021 redistricting cycle.

In a similar case, the Supreme Court declined Alabama officials’ request to use a Republican-drawn congressional map for the 2024 elections, which a lower court found likely violated federal law.

This led to a new map that gives Alabama a second district where Black voters constitute a significant portion of the electorate.

Other states, including Georgia, Louisiana, and Florida, are also embroiled in disputes over their voting maps.

Recently, the Supreme Court allowed Louisiana to use a congressional map with a second majority-Black district, potentially benefiting Democrats in the November elections.

Also Read: Ethereum Spot ETFs Near SEC Approval Amid Crypto Market Growth