Supreme Court of the United States
Golden Bethune-Hill, Appellants v. Virginia State Board of Elections
March 1, 2017580 U.S. 178
Summary
The Court held that the District Court erred by requiring a threshold conflict between the enacted redistricting plan and traditional principles to prove racial predominance. For 11 districts, the Court vacated the judgment and remanded for the District Court to reconsider the claim under the proper holistic standard. For District 75, the Court affirmed because the legislature had a strong basis in evidence to believe the 55% black voting-age population target was necessary to comply with Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act.
Holding
- Whether a threshold conflict with traditional redistricting principles is required to establish racial predominance.. An actual conflict with traditional redistricting criteria is not a threshold requirement or mandatory precondition to establish racial predominance.
- Whether the District Court properly analyzed racial predominance by focusing only on lines that deviated from traditional criteria.. Courts must consider all of the lines of the district at issue; a holistic district-wide analysis is necessary.
- Whether the State had a strong basis in evidence to believe the 55% BVAP target in District 75 was necessary to avoid violating Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act.. The State had a strong basis in evidence to believe the 55% BVAP target was necessary to comply with Section 5.
Docket 15–680.
Cited authorities
- 120 Stat. 580
- 52 U.S.C. § 10304
- 52 U.S.C. § 10304
- 28 U.S.C. § 2284
- 28 U.S.C. § 1253
- 52 U.S.C. § 10304
- 76 FR 7471