[1]Swing LeftSwing Left
Hi John,
There’s been a lot happening on redistricting and voting rights lately,
and with important elections coming up in just two weeks, we wanted to
share an update on where things stand.
At the Supreme Court:
This month, the Court heard Louisiana v. Callais, a major redistricting
case through which the Court could gut Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act,
which protects against racial discrimination in voting.
If overturned or weakened, Republicans could dismantle congressional
districts where voters of color make up the majority in states across the
country. In a worst-case scenario, they could redraw maps to gain an
additional 19 Republican House seats. The decision isn’t expected until
next summer, but it underscores why flipping as many House seats as
possible (and flipping the whole darn House for Democrats) in the 2026
midterms is so critical.
Meanwhile, in the states:
Republicans are already forging ahead with plans to gerrymander
congressional maps in multiple GOP-controlled states.
* You’ve probably already heard about the new maps in Texas, which aim
to net Republicans five additional U.S. House seats. There’s ongoing
litigation in federal court challenging this gerrymander, which should
be decided in the next few weeks.
* Today in North Carolina, the state senate approved a new congressional
map aimed at giving Republicans one additional congressional seat, and
the state house is expected to pass it this week. The current proposed
maps would give their party an 11-3 advantage in the state’s 14
congressional districts. This would replace a map that was already
gerrymandered enough to help flip the U.S. House to Republicans in
2024—and is far less fair than the 2022 court-drawn map that produced
a 7-7 split. Democratic Governor Josh Stein can’t veto redistricting
legislation, so we expect to see this fight to move to the courts,
too.
* In Missouri, Republicans passed new gerrymandered maps last month in
an attempt to net Republicans one additional seat, splitting up one of
the state’s largest urban areas into different districts, while
reducing the number of Black and minority voters in a current
Democratic-held seat. Voters are already organizing a referendum
effort to overturn the new maps.
* In Indiana, Trump and JD Vance are continuing to put pressure on
lawmakers to redraw maps that could eliminate both of the state’s
Democratic-held districts. So far, Republican lawmakers have resisted,
but the pressure is ramping up—even while a majority of voters oppose
the effort.
We’re also keeping an eye out on Ohio, which is required to redraw its
maps this fall; Utah, where a court-ordered new map is waiting to be
approved by the court; and states like Maryland and Illinois, where
Democrats are considering redrawing their maps in response to Republican
efforts.
These developments are why passing California’s Proposition 50, also known
as the Election Rigging Response Act, is so important. If passed, the
measure would temporarily redraw California’s congressional maps ahead of
the midterms, helping mitigate redraws by Republican-controlled states,
and ensuring Democrats still have a shot at flipping the House next year.
The effort in California also differs from what Republicans are doing in
one important way: While new California maps would not change minority
representation, the efforts in Louisiana and other Republican-controlled
states would reduce minority representation.
Swing Left is going all out to make sure this ballot measure succeeds, but
in an off-year election in which polls show a significant number of
undecided voters, turnout will be critical.
[ [link removed] ]So with just two weeks to go, please consider signing up for a phone
bank shift to call California voters. The Bay Area Coalition (made up of
multiple Swing Left groups!) is hosting two shifts—October 25 and November
1—so you can pick the date that works best for you.
[ [link removed] ]Sign Up To Phone Bank
We’ll continue to keep you updated as things change. But for now, thank
you for everything you do.
— The Swing Left Team
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