In a closely watched fight over Texas voting districts and the rights of Latinos, Chief Justice John Roberts aptly observed, “We are all under the gun of very strict time limitations.” Monday’s Supreme Court arguments in a case that could affect voting rights nationwide were marked by frustration among the justices. On one side is a looming Texas primary schedule. On the other, separate proceedings in a lower court in Washington could eclipse any action the justices take.
At the end of the sometimes testy session, it was unclear which way the high court was headed among competing interests. Texas Republicans want reinstatement of maps drawn by the GOP-dominated Legislature. Mexican-American advocates favor a lower-court-drawn interim map. The U.S. Justice Department wants the case returned to a lower U.S. court in San Antonio for further proceedings.
The dispute is being closely watched as numerous challenges from other states and localities have been made to a provision in the landmark 1965 Voting Rights Act forcing certain places, mostly in the South, to submit their election procedure changes for screening, also called “pre-clearance.”
Full Article: Court pressed for time in redistricting case – USATODAY.com.