US appeals court denies Jacksonville request to use ‘substantially likely’ racially gerrymandered maps in upcoming elections News
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US appeals court denies Jacksonville request to use ‘substantially likely’ racially gerrymandered maps in upcoming elections

The US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit Tuesday denied the City of Jacksonville’s request to stay a redistricting case between the city and civil rights groups. The stay would have allowed the city to use newly drawn voting district maps in upcoming elections. As it stands, a preliminary injunction prevents the maps from being used, as local civil rights organizations allege the maps are racially gerrymandered.

The court agreed with a district court’s finding that “race was substantially likely a predominant factor in the redistricting process” in Jacksonville. The court found it was better to allow the court battle play out, as the newly drawn maps offered by Jacksonville are “substantially likely to be unconstitutional” in violation of the Equal Protection Clause because the district court found that Jacksonville officials relied heavily on racial data to determine district lines.

The Jacksonville City Council passed the contested maps on March 22. At issue are 14 city council districts, five at-large residence areas, and seven school board districts. On May 3, the Jacksonville chapters of the NAACP, the ACLU and two other local groups filed suit in a federal district court against the city, alleging the maps were gerrymandered. Specifically, the organizations asserted that the Jacksonville City Council violated the Equal Protection Clause by packing Black voters into only a few districts, blocking Black voters from having a greater influence across more districts.

The district court granted the civil rights groups a preliminary injunction and stopped the March 22 maps from going into effect as the court battle continues. The case is set to go to trial. In the meantime, the district court ordered Jacksonville to provide a remedial map by November 8. Instead of doing so, Jacksonville filed for a stay. Now, with the US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit’s denial for stay, Jacksonville will have to comply with the district order.

As it stands now, Jacksonville must draw new voting district maps for the March 2023 elections. In order to stay on schedule, the district lines must be in place by December 16.