A theory that was advanced by North Carolina’s Republican legislative leaders has been rejected by the nation’s highest court. At the heart of the case before the Supreme Court, Moore v. Harper, was the Independent State Legislature Theory. It holds that when drawing legislative districts, or setting election laws of any kind, state legislatures have full reign to act in that regard and cannot be overridden by state courts or other state actors.
Wake Forest University Professor of Politics and International Affairs John Dinan says in rejecting this theory, the Supreme Court allowed for some judicial review but did not grant courts free rein.
"It could have freed up state legislatures around the country to draw district maps in ways that could be unchallenged by their own state supreme court," says Dinan. "So, basically it’s a status quo decision that the U.S. Supreme Court handed down — status quo for North Carolina and status quo for the rest of the country."
Currently, North Carolina has seven Republicans and seven Democrats in its congressional delegation. Those maps will be redrawn before the next election. Dinan says with a strong Republican majority in the General Assembly and a conservative advantage in the state supreme court, it’s widely expected that they will be successfully redrawn with a 10 to 4 Republican advantage.
To hear John Dinan's full conversation with WFDD's David Ford, see audio above.