In an Aug. 1 decision over redistricting of county commission seats in Galveston, Texas, the 5th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals has issued a decision that stops the political misuse of the Voting Rights Act by Democrats and their allies to create voting districts loyal to the Democratic Party instead of protecting the voting rights of minorities. This decision may also affect the political makeup of Congress and state legislatures in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas—the states within the jurisdiction of the 5th Circuit—moving dozens of seats from Democrat to Republican.
In Petteway v. Galveston County, the full appeals court concluded that Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act does not protect or “authorize coalition claims, either expressly or by implication.” Coalition districts are districts in which no single minority group constitutes a majority of the voters….
