Fighting Racial Gerrymandering
LWV of South Carolina and LWVUS filed amicus briefs at the United States Supreme Court supporting plaintiffs seeking affirmation of a three-judge panel ruling that found South Carolina’s first congressional district to be a racial gerrymander. The plaintiffs argued the state legislature violated the Fifteenth Amendment and Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause by dividing Black communities and voters among multiple districts to reduce their power to affect elections.
Protecting Public Education in Montana
LWV of Montana and co-plaintiffs filed a lawsuit in Montana state court asserting a new law creating a “community choice” school system violated several provisions of Montana’s state constitution by creating a parallel education system separate from state institutions and regulations overseeing the public school system, extending government funding to these community choice schools, and restricting who could vote for their governing boards.
Defending Ballot Initiatives in Ohio
LWV Ohio filed an amicus brief in the Ohio Supreme Court. The brief supported plaintiffs who asserted that the legislature’s placement of an amendment restricting Ohio voters from directly amending the state constitution on an August special election ballot violated state law.
Fighting for Truth in Ballot Initiatives
LWV Ohio filed an amicus brief in the Ohio Supreme Court supporting plaintiffs who argued the ballot language describing a proposed constitutional amendment restricting directly initiated constitutional amendments was illegally biased and misleading to voters.
Fighting for Representative Elections
LWV Pikes Peak Region and partners sued the city of Colorado Springs for holding its municipal elections in April during odd-numbered years. Hispanic and Black voter turnout is often much lower in these elections. Plaintiffs argued that the unusual timing of these elections violated Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act.
Fighting Racial Gerrymandering in Tennessee
LWV Tennessee, the Tennessee NAACP, the Equity Alliance, Memphis A. Phillip Randolph Institute, African American Clergy Collective of Tennessee, and five individual voters filed a federal lawsuit arguing the state’s fifth, sixth, and seventh Congressional districts as well as the 31st state senate district were racially gerrymandered.