SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Demonstrators hold up signs at a rally at the Texas State Capitol on June 20, 2021 in Austin. (Photo: Sergio Flores/Getty Images)
Institute Index: Why the DOJ Sued Texas Over Its New Voting Maps
U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland and Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta announced the lawsuit last week.
Dec 12, 2021
Date on which the U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against Texas under the Voting Rights Act, challenging new redistricting plans for congressional and state House districts: 12/6/2021
Section of the Voting Rights Act the DOJ claims the Texas maps violate, which is the provision banning discrimination on account of race, color, or language minority status: 2
Month when the DOJ published guidance explaining that the VRA's Section 2 prohibits "vote dilution," which occurs when an electoral practice cancels the voting strength of racial or language minority groups, and which the DOJ believes will happen under Texas's new redistricting plans: 9/2021
Number by which Texas's population grew from 2010 to 2020: 4 million
Number of new congressional seats Texas got because of that population growth: 2
Percent of Texas's growth over the past decade represented by Black and Latino people: 95
Percent of the state's two new congressional districts drawn to have Anglo voting majorities: 100
The new maps' reduction in the number of Texas congressional districts with a majority of eligible voters who are Black: 1 to 0
The reduction in the number of Texas congressional districts with Hispanic voting majorities: 8 to 7
Reduction in the number of state House districts with a Hispanic voting majority: 33 to 30
Given the state's population changes, number of Texas's congressional and state House districts, respectively, where Latinos should be able to win a seat in order for the community to achieve proportional representation: 11, 45
Number of the legislature's new congressional and state House districts where a Latino could be elected: 7, 29
In the Dallas area, miles some new voting districts extend to put urban communities of color in predominantly white rural districts: 100
Over the past three decades, number of times the state legislature has eliminated a Latino electoral opportunity in West Texas despite court rulings that this violates the law: 3
Instead of the more liberal D.C. Circuit, the conservative-stacked federal appeals circuit that will now hear the Texas case, a consequence of the U.S. Supreme Court's 2013 Shelby County, Alabama v. Holder ruling, which also ended the Voting Rights Act's federal preclearance requirement for election changes in places with a history of voter discrimination, including Texas: 5th
Total number of lawsuits Texas now faces over its election maps for diminishing the voting strength of communities of color: at least 5
Number of election cycles experts say it may take for these lawsuits to be resolved, with Texans voting under the problematic maps in the meantime unless Congress shores up weakened voting rights protections by passing legislation such as the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act: multiple
(Click on figure to go to source.)
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. US voters have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. If you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
Sue Sturgis
Sue Sturgis is the Director and regular contributor to the Institute for Southern Study's online magazine, Facing South, with a focus on energy and environmental issues. She is a former staff writer for The News & Observer in Raleigh, North Carolina, and the Independent Weekly in Durham, North Carolina. Sue is the author or co-author of five Institute reports, including Faith in the Gulf (Aug/Sept 2008), Hurricane Katrina and the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement (January 2008) and Blueprint for Gulf Renewal (Aug/Sept 2007). Sue holds a Masters in Journalism from New York University.
Date on which the U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against Texas under the Voting Rights Act, challenging new redistricting plans for congressional and state House districts: 12/6/2021
Section of the Voting Rights Act the DOJ claims the Texas maps violate, which is the provision banning discrimination on account of race, color, or language minority status: 2
Month when the DOJ published guidance explaining that the VRA's Section 2 prohibits "vote dilution," which occurs when an electoral practice cancels the voting strength of racial or language minority groups, and which the DOJ believes will happen under Texas's new redistricting plans: 9/2021
Number by which Texas's population grew from 2010 to 2020: 4 million
Number of new congressional seats Texas got because of that population growth: 2
Percent of Texas's growth over the past decade represented by Black and Latino people: 95
Percent of the state's two new congressional districts drawn to have Anglo voting majorities: 100
The new maps' reduction in the number of Texas congressional districts with a majority of eligible voters who are Black: 1 to 0
The reduction in the number of Texas congressional districts with Hispanic voting majorities: 8 to 7
Reduction in the number of state House districts with a Hispanic voting majority: 33 to 30
Given the state's population changes, number of Texas's congressional and state House districts, respectively, where Latinos should be able to win a seat in order for the community to achieve proportional representation: 11, 45
Number of the legislature's new congressional and state House districts where a Latino could be elected: 7, 29
In the Dallas area, miles some new voting districts extend to put urban communities of color in predominantly white rural districts: 100
Over the past three decades, number of times the state legislature has eliminated a Latino electoral opportunity in West Texas despite court rulings that this violates the law: 3
Instead of the more liberal D.C. Circuit, the conservative-stacked federal appeals circuit that will now hear the Texas case, a consequence of the U.S. Supreme Court's 2013 Shelby County, Alabama v. Holder ruling, which also ended the Voting Rights Act's federal preclearance requirement for election changes in places with a history of voter discrimination, including Texas: 5th
Total number of lawsuits Texas now faces over its election maps for diminishing the voting strength of communities of color: at least 5
Number of election cycles experts say it may take for these lawsuits to be resolved, with Texans voting under the problematic maps in the meantime unless Congress shores up weakened voting rights protections by passing legislation such as the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act: multiple
(Click on figure to go to source.)
Sue Sturgis
Sue Sturgis is the Director and regular contributor to the Institute for Southern Study's online magazine, Facing South, with a focus on energy and environmental issues. She is a former staff writer for The News & Observer in Raleigh, North Carolina, and the Independent Weekly in Durham, North Carolina. Sue is the author or co-author of five Institute reports, including Faith in the Gulf (Aug/Sept 2008), Hurricane Katrina and the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement (January 2008) and Blueprint for Gulf Renewal (Aug/Sept 2007). Sue holds a Masters in Journalism from New York University.
Date on which the U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against Texas under the Voting Rights Act, challenging new redistricting plans for congressional and state House districts: 12/6/2021
Section of the Voting Rights Act the DOJ claims the Texas maps violate, which is the provision banning discrimination on account of race, color, or language minority status: 2
Month when the DOJ published guidance explaining that the VRA's Section 2 prohibits "vote dilution," which occurs when an electoral practice cancels the voting strength of racial or language minority groups, and which the DOJ believes will happen under Texas's new redistricting plans: 9/2021
Number by which Texas's population grew from 2010 to 2020: 4 million
Number of new congressional seats Texas got because of that population growth: 2
Percent of Texas's growth over the past decade represented by Black and Latino people: 95
Percent of the state's two new congressional districts drawn to have Anglo voting majorities: 100
The new maps' reduction in the number of Texas congressional districts with a majority of eligible voters who are Black: 1 to 0
The reduction in the number of Texas congressional districts with Hispanic voting majorities: 8 to 7
Reduction in the number of state House districts with a Hispanic voting majority: 33 to 30
Given the state's population changes, number of Texas's congressional and state House districts, respectively, where Latinos should be able to win a seat in order for the community to achieve proportional representation: 11, 45
Number of the legislature's new congressional and state House districts where a Latino could be elected: 7, 29
In the Dallas area, miles some new voting districts extend to put urban communities of color in predominantly white rural districts: 100
Over the past three decades, number of times the state legislature has eliminated a Latino electoral opportunity in West Texas despite court rulings that this violates the law: 3
Instead of the more liberal D.C. Circuit, the conservative-stacked federal appeals circuit that will now hear the Texas case, a consequence of the U.S. Supreme Court's 2013 Shelby County, Alabama v. Holder ruling, which also ended the Voting Rights Act's federal preclearance requirement for election changes in places with a history of voter discrimination, including Texas: 5th
Total number of lawsuits Texas now faces over its election maps for diminishing the voting strength of communities of color: at least 5
Number of election cycles experts say it may take for these lawsuits to be resolved, with Texans voting under the problematic maps in the meantime unless Congress shores up weakened voting rights protections by passing legislation such as the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act: multiple
(Click on figure to go to source.)
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.
To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good.
News & Opinion
Trending
Common Dreams, Inc. Founded 1997. Registered 501(c3) Non-Profit
Privacy Policy