Staff Reports
In a righteous decision that put the power back in the hands of the people, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 to reject North Carolina’s ludicrous “independent legislature theory” and upheld the authority of the state’s courts to enforce fair and impartial election laws.
The North Carolina legislature tried to argue that they had complete and total control over election law in their state, even going so far as to assert that they were above judicial oversight. Thankfully, the Supreme Court saw through this unconstitutional nonsense and ruled in favor of the voters.
Third (and *last*) ruling is Moore v. Harper.
For a 6-3 majority (Thomas, Alito, and Gorsuch dissenting), Chief Justice Roberts reaches the merits and *rejects* the "independent state legislature" theory:https://t.co/EfbSKSwBm7
— Steve Vladeck (@steve_vladeck) June 27, 2023
The issue at stake was the GOP’s use of gerrymandering to create favorable congressional districts. Naturally, Democrats took issue with this blatant attempt at manipulating the system and challenged the GOP-drawn maps. The state’s Supreme Court agreed with the Democrats, but the GOP flipped the court in the 2022 midterms and attempted to overrule the previous decision.
However, the Supreme Court saw through this treachery and sided with the people. The state’s courts have a right to uphold the state constitution, and state legislatures cannot simply ignore these rules to suit their own purposes. It’s a stunning rebuke to the GOP’s attempts to rig the system in their favor, and a major victory for anyone who believes in fair and impartial elections.
3rd and last: Chief opinion in Moore v. Harper. Held: The Elections Clause does not vest exclusive and independent authority in state legislatures to set the rules regarding federal elections. 6-3, with CT, Gorsuch, Alito in dissent.https://t.co/HjDGPqUWtu
— Ed Whelan (@EdWhelanEPPC) June 27, 2023
The Supreme Court has done its job in upholding the rule of law, and in the process has defended the constitutional rights of the people of North Carolina. Let’s hope that the GOP will take this ruling to heart and start playing by the rules for once.
Source: Red State
