Tag Archives: Voting Rights Act

Interim map hearing tomorrow

Posted on February 13, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Big day in San Antonio tomorrow. Groups involved in the state’s redistricting fight were ordered by a San Antonio federal court Friday to continue negotiations through the weekend over interim redistricting maps for the 2012 election. The court order comes … Continue reading →

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The numbers in the “deal”

Posted on February 7, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

As I start to type this I have no idea if the “deal” that was announced earlier today will be in effect or on the trash heap. I think it’s instructive to look at the numbers in the proposed maps … Continue reading →

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DC court will take its time

Posted on February 3, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

At least a month. A panel of federal judges told parties in a Texas redistricting case Wednesday not to expect a ruling within 30 days, throwing the date of the state’s political primaries further in doubt. A ruling by the … Continue reading →

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Redistricting settlement deal looking unlikely

Posted on February 1, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Late last week we heard about the possibility of a settlement agreement in the San Antonio redistricting case that would allow for the creation of interim maps in time to keep the April 3 primary date. The court gave this … Continue reading →

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Meet the voter ID three judge panel

Posted on January 31, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

As you know, the state of Texas has filed a lawsuit in the DC District Federal Court – the same court that is hearing the preclearance lawsuit – to get the odious voter ID law precleared. Michael Li introduces us … Continue reading →

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Update on the redistricting settlement possibility

Posted on January 28, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Late Friday we heard about the possibility of a settlement agreement in the redistricting lawsuit in San Antonio, with the idea of coming up with an interim map in time to keep the primaries on April 6. Here’s an update … Continue reading →

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Could there be a settlement in the redistricting lawsuit?

Posted on January 27, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Maybe. A leading player in the state’s redistricting turmoil said this morning he’s hopeful that both sides are closing in on a settlement that will salvage Texas’ April 3 primary. Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott has been meeting with representatives … Continue reading →

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Alford strikes again

Posted on January 26, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Wow. A key witness before a federal three-judge panel considering the Texas redistricting challenge appeared to make a major concession Wednesday to the case made last week by state Sen. Wendy Davis, D-Fort Worth. The state’s expert witness, John Alford … Continue reading →

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Texas files suit to preclear voter ID

Posted on January 24, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

They’re a mighty busy bunch at the OAG these days. The Texas attorney general’s office today filed suit against U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and the Department of Justice to have the state’s controversial voter ID law implemented without further … Continue reading →

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Trying to save the April 3 primary date

Posted on January 24, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The race is on to get new maps in hand in time to keep the April 3 primary date, since all the options for after that date are distinctly unpalatable in one way or another. On Friday, the State of … Continue reading →

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SCOTUS issues ruling on redistricting

Posted on January 20, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

As you’ve undoubtedly heard by now, the Supreme Court has officially thrown out the interim maps that were drawn by the San Antonio court, in a unanimous decision handed down this morning. What does this mean? I’m going to start … Continue reading →

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DC preclearance trial, Day One

Posted on January 18, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

While we wait for the Supreme Court to give us some indication of what happens next with our elections – they did not issue an opinion this week – the preclearance trial at the DC federal court got underway. State … Continue reading →

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SOS sends voter registration info to DOJ

Posted on January 14, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Took them long enough, not that I’m complaining. Two weeks after Texas’ voter ID law was scheduled to go into effect, the measure is back in the U.S. Department of Justice’s hands. The Texas secretary of state’s office on Thursday … Continue reading →

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Sylvia Garcia’s impressions of the SCOTUS oral arguments on redistricting

Posted on January 12, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Former County Commissioner Sylvia Garcia was in Washington, DC to attend the Supreme Court hearing on the Texas redistricting case. I asked her before she left if she would be interested in writing about her impressions of the case for … Continue reading →

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Reports from SCOTUS redistricting arguments

Posted on January 9, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

There’s almost too much information to parse on the legal arguments made before the Supreme Court over the Texas redistricting maps. Let’s start with The Hill: The Supreme Court justices grappled to find a way to resolve a messy Texas … Continue reading →

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SCOTUS hears redistricting arguments today

Posted on January 9, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Today is a big effin’ deal at the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court will attempt on Monday to untangle the political mess in Texas created by a voting rights controversy. The case could have important political consequences, and highlights a … Continue reading →

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DOJ preclears Commissioners Court map

Posted on January 1, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

This came in late Friday. The U.S. Department of Justice has approved Harris County’s redistricting map for commissioner precincts, which has been the subject of a lawsuit from Latino activists since August. The approval, known as “pre-clearance” under the Voting … Continue reading →

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DOJ files amicus brief in favor of interim maps

Posted on December 30, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Michael Li: The Justice Department is not a party to the San Antonio case and, until now, it hasn’t been involved in the interim map appeal before the Supreme Court. However, given the possible impact that a Supreme Court ruling … Continue reading →

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D.C. panel issues decision defining preclearance standards

Posted on December 26, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From Michael Li: Late Thursday evening, the D.C. panel issued its long-awaited opinion defining the standards for preclearance under section 5 of the Voting Rights Act and further explaining why the court had earlier rejected the State of Texas’ request … Continue reading →

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DOJ refuses to preclear South Carolina voter ID law

Posted on December 26, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Good. The U.S. Department of Justice on Friday rejected as discriminatory a South Carolina law requiring voters to show photo identification at the polls. The action by the department’s civil rights division, coupled with Attorney General Eric Holder’s call 10 … Continue reading →

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SCOTUS redistricting briefs

Posted on December 22, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Opening briefs for the SCOTUS hearing on Texas redistricting were filed yesterday – you can see them here. The State of Texas is going long – Michael Li explains. The State of Texas asks the Supreme Court to let the … Continue reading →

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On voting rights

Posted on December 20, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Attorney General Eric Holder was in Austin last week to give a speech on voting rights and the things the Justice Department is doing to protect them. No, the location was not an accident. Giving his most expansive speech on … Continue reading →

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African-American State Reps state their map objections

Posted on December 7, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

http://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/Black-lawmakers-blast-revised-Texas-voting-maps-2346838.php Contending that African Americans have been an afterthought during the contentious yearlong redistricting process, four Houston lawmakers on Monday voiced their objections to the interim House map a three-judge panel drew recently. “A lot of emphasis over the past … Continue reading →

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Still waiting on SCOTUS

Posted on December 5, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Responses to the State of Texas’ stay request for State House and State Senate elections were due Thursday. Responses to the stay request for Congressional elections, which was filed Wednesday, are due this morning. It’s not clear when SCOTUS will … Continue reading →

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A little perspective about redistricting

Posted on November 29, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

So now we wait for the full Supreme Court’s ruling on AG Abbott’s requests to stay the 2012 elections, which by the way would only apply to the elections affected by the disputed redistricting maps. Other primary elections for things … Continue reading →

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SCOTUS asks for briefs in stay request

Posted on November 28, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

We still have a few more days at least before we get some kind of resolution over the maps we will be using for this election. Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott on Monday asked the U.S. Supreme Court to stop … Continue reading →

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Galveston County redistricting plan blocked by federal judge

Posted on November 27, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Seems to be a lot of stories like this these days. A U.S. District Court judge has blocked the county’s redistricting plan for this election cycle because it has not received preclearance from the U.S. Department of Justice. In an … Continue reading →

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Going for the stay

Posted on November 26, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Late Wednesday, AG Greg Abbott requested that the San Antonio court stay its order implementing new maps for Congress, the State House, and the State Senate, exhibiting his usual grace and class in doing so. Not unexpectedly, the San Antonio … Continue reading →

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Modified House and Senate maps are out

Posted on November 24, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The federal court in San Antonio has now issued orders that slightly tweaked the State House and State Senate maps; the new plans are H302 and S164, respectively. The modifications are minor and mostly affect a few districts in Harris … Continue reading →

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Chron story on the interim Harris County map

Posted on November 22, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s the Chron story about the weekend order to implement an interim map for Harris County. As expected, the plaintiffs are happy about this. Of interest to me is the county’s response. Gene Locke, an attorney representing the county, said … Continue reading →

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More map feedback

Posted on November 22, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

In addition to AG Abbott’s pitiful whining, a few other parties have been heard from regarding the interim legislative map. First, Speaker Joe Straus performs his duty as a Republican. Here’s his statement: “As the panel of three federal judges … Continue reading →

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State objects to court-drawn maps

Posted on November 20, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

No surprise. Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott’s office on Friday slammed an interim redistricting map proposed by a three-judge panel in San Antonio, saying the federal jurists overstepped their bounds in redrawing House and Senate district lines that could cost … Continue reading →

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DOJ defers again on voter ID

Posted on November 18, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

In addition to the interim maps, we got some more good news yesterday. Texas provided “incomplete” information that does not enable federal officials to determine whether their proposed voter ID law would be discriminatory, the Justice Department said in a … Continue reading →

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Interim State House and State Senate maps are out

Posted on November 17, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

And I don’t have any time right now to analyze them, but believe you me, I will. Go here and look at Plans H298 and S163, the latter of which appears to mostly restore Sen. Wendy Davis’ district. Also take … Continue reading →

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