The 5th Circuit Stops Democrats’ Misuse of the Voting Rights Act—and That May Shift Control of Congress
3rd August 2024
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. Instead, in those districts, there is a combination of different minority racial, ethnic, or language groups that make up a majority of voters.
The citizen population of Galveston County is 58% white, 22.5% Hispanic, and 12.5% black. Although the black population is concentrated in the center of the county, the Hispanic population is evenly dispersed throughout. The county commission consists of five seats: four elected from specific districts and one elected at-large. Neither the black nor the Hispanic population of Galveston County is large enough and concentrated enough to draw a single commission district in which either group constitutes a majority of the voters in that particular district.