CAPITAL HIGHLIGHTS | Federal court panel rulesagainst Texas redistricting plan

By Ed Sterling

Three of Texas’ 36 congressional districts are unconstitutional because of racial or political gerrymandering, a three-judge panel of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas ruled on March 10.
The judges ruled 2-1 that the districts’ boundaries, drawn by the Texas Legislature in 2011 and 2013, violate the U.S. Constitution.
Plaintiffs in the case called Perez et al. v. Abbott et al. mounted statewide and regional claims in South and West Texas, in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and the Houston area under Section 2 of the U.S. Voting Rights Act and the Fourteenth Amendment. States that have a history of race-based voter suppression may be subject to judicial pre-clearance of redistricting plans under Section 2. 
The Fourteenth Amendment requires due process and equal protection under the law for all citizens.
The three congressional districts that were ruled unconstitutionally drawn were District 23, currently represented by Will Hurd, R-Helotes; District 27, Blake Farenthold, R-Corpus Christi; and District 35, Lloyd Doggett, D-Austin.
The panel, composed of Circuit Judge Jerry E. Smith, Chief District Judge Orlando L. Garcia and District Judge Xavier Rodriguez, did not suggest how those districts might be redrawn in a constitutionally acceptable manner. 
Judge Smith wrote a dissenting opinion, saying the panel lacked jurisdiction to rule on the case. He discussed the applicability of prior rulings made by higher courts that already have heard plaintiffs’ arguments. 
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on March 13 reacted, asserting his agreement with Judge Smith’s dissent and saying, “There are no lines to redraw. Accordingly, we are confident we will prevail in this case.”