The judges said the lawsuit could be refiled.
A Tennessee panel of judges dismissed a lawsuit alleging that the Tennessee Republican Party engaged in unconstitutional racial gerrymandering by redistricting an electoral map, but also argued that the facts of the case are consistent with a politically motivated gerrymander.
According to The Associated Press, in their Aug. 21 ruling, the three judge panel wrote, “In sum, the complaint alleges facts that are consistent with a racial gerrymander. But the facts are also consistent with a political gerrymander.”
Plaintiffs in this case included the Tennessee State Conference of the NAACP, the African American Clergy Collective of Tennessee, the Equity Alliance, the League of Women Voters, and a group of Tennessee voters that includes former Democratic State Sen. Brenda Gilmore.
Republicans like Tennessee’s House Speaker Cameron Sexton signaled their approval as his office released a statement claiming that they were “happy to have resolution on this matter so that we can focus on what’s ahead for Tennessee.”
However, Tennessee’s state legislative maps still face another lawsuit on the grounds that they constitute a violation of Tennessee’s state constitution.
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Source: Black Enterprise
