The Texas redistricting decision is in, and it's completely unsurprising!
The 2010 census revealed that Texas had 4 million more residents than it had in 2000. Re-drawing district lines for both federal and state legislative offices was necessary to comply with the constitutional one person, one vote standard. The Republican-dominated state legislature got to work and devised a comprehensive redistricting plan.
Thing is, Section 5 of the 1965 Voting Rights Act provides that states with a history of voting discrimination must get approval from the Attorney General or the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia before any change in voting procedures (redistricting included) can take effect. It'll come as no surprise to anyone that Section 5 applies to Texas.
The state legislature immediately submitted its redistricting plan to the district court for approval. That case remains pending.
In the meantime, private plaintiffs filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas seeking to block the redistricting plan on the ground that it discriminates against Hispanics in violation of the VRA and the federal Constitution. The Texas court held a trial but declined to rule in advance of the D.C. court's resolution of the preapproval case.
With primary elections approaching, the Texas court held hearings and issued an interim redistricting plan. The state legislature blew a gasket and demanded that the Supreme Court stay the interim plan pending appeal. The Supreme Court granted the stay, which for all practical purposes meant that a majority of the justices had already decided the legislature would win.
Today, a mere eleven days after oral argument, the Supreme Court ruled 9-0 in favor of the
Republicans state legislature, holding that the Texas court's interim plan is insufficiently deferential to the
Republicans state legislature.
Adding further credence to Sock Puppet's suggestion that Thomas' career is but a really big troll, ol' Clarence wrote a short concurring opinion reiterating his view that Section 5 of the VRA is an unconstitutional infringement on state sovereignty. Unless and until the state legislature's plan is found to violate the Constitution or the substantive provisions of the VRA, that plan controls in any upcoming election. (Entertainingly enough, Section 5 and the preapproval process set forth therein is likely the only reason the Texas court hasn't yet ruled on the substantive challenges to the state legislature's plan.)
Perry v. Perez (pdf, 13 pages)