The United States Supreme Court on Wednesday, December 7, is reviewing an election law file that is causing great concern on the left, but not only because it could revolutionize the way White House and congressional elections are organized. The hearing will focus on a new legal theory proposed by Republican congressmen from North Carolina, which, if passed, would give lawmakers in all 50 states the freedom to organize federal elections.
Postal voting, office hours, documents that must be submitted to register on the electoral rolls… The Constitution entrusts the task of defining to the legislatures of each state; “Time, place and procedure” requests. Their laws, however, are subject to review by local courts and possible veto by their state governor. That’s what elected officials in North Carolina want to change. The Constitution for them “Puts regulation of federal elections in the hands of state legislators and no one else”.
This so-called theory “independent state legislators” n / A: “Never been upheld by the Supreme Court, even though it has been in circulation for some time.” noted attorney Amy Mason Saharia during a presentation on the case at the Cato Law Institute. Four of its nine judges expressed interest in this reading “And there is a possibility that the Court will adopt this doctrine.”according to Me Saharia.
Democratic North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper believes that such a shutdown “Could fundamentally transform American democracy”already weakened by former President Donald Trump’s attempts to reverse his defeat in the 2020 election. “Our democracy is a fragile ecosystem that needs checks and balances to survive.”he writes in a column published by The New York Times. Accusing his state’s elected Republicans of having “The electoral process was manipulated for political gain”.the governor was delighted that the local judiciary was able to block their efforts.
One of these battles is at the heart of a Supreme Court case. As a result of the 2020 census, North Carolina experienced population growth, the state gained an additional seat in the House of Representatives. Its parliamentarians then revised the constituencies’ outlines. In February, their map was struck down by the state Supreme Court, which ruled that it favored the Republican Party by clustering Democratic voters in certain precincts to dilute their vote elsewhere. The second map didn’t seem fairer, so the local high court appointed an independent expert to look after it.
This extreme interpretation of the Constitution would allow local elected officials to disenfranchise some voters, divide electoral districts as they see fit, and potentially sabotage election results. »
Sophia Lynn Luckin, ACLU
North Carolina lawmakers then appealed to the US Supreme Court, accusing the local court system of usurping their role. His sages refused to intervene quickly, and the pundit card served well in November’s midterm elections, which allowed seven representatives from each party to be elected. But the Court wanted to address the substantive issue.
Ahead of the hearing, President Joe Biden’s administration, Democratic state and senators, law professors and every major civil rights association (ACLU, NAACP, ADL, HRW) wrote to the Court to dissuade it from adopting the new theory. “This extreme interpretation of the Constitution will allow local elected officials to disenfranchise some voters, divide voting districts as they see fit, and potentially sabotage the outcome of the election.”Sophia Lynn Lakin of the ACLU told the press.
Our political system would suffer greatly if the massacres in the constituencies were to go out of control. »
Former Republican Governor of California Arnold Schwarzenegger
The Republican Party judged “absurd” this alarming discourse. Reasoning for North Carolina’s elected officials “He will not give carte blanche to state legislatures.”, whose work can always be challenged in federal courts, he said in an argument filed with the high court. But the theory is not unanimous among conservatives. “Our political system will suffer greatly if the massacre of constituencies goes unchecked”in particular, the former Republican governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger, assessed.
The court should make its decision by June 30.
Source: Le Figaro
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.