Supreme Court's Conservative Ruling Sparks Outrage from Justice Kagan Over Gerrymandering Decision
In a scathing dissent, Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan criticized the conservative majority for their hasty decision to allow Texas to use Republican-favoring maps in the 2026 midterms, disregarding an extensive ruling by a lower court. The court's decision effectively blocks a lower court's finding that the maps were likely the result of an unconstitutional racial gerrymander.
Kagan expressed her dismay at the majority's lack of evidence supporting their reversal of the lower court's ruling and failure to adhere to its own review standards. She emphasized that the district court conducted a thorough nine-day hearing involving over two dozen witnesses, introducing thousands of exhibits, and carefully assessing witness credibility before concluding that Texas had divided its citizens along racial lines in an attempt to create a pro-Republican House map.
The Supreme Court's decision has sparked outrage from Democrats, with several states considering their own partisan gerrymander to counterbalance the seat-swing in Texas. In response to this challenge, California voters recently passed a proposition to redraw their maps in a way that favors Democrats.
Kagan took aim at President Donald Trump, who played a significant role in pushing for these redistricting changes. She highlighted how Trump framed the unusual process as a legal necessity and noted the court's casual dismissal of the extensive evidence presented by the district court. Kagan emphasized that while the Supreme Court is technically a higher court than the lower court, its decision "is not a better one" in terms of making fact-based decisions like this one.
The outcome of this decision guarantees that the new maps will be used for the 2026 midterms, potentially undermining voting rights and perpetuating partisan politics.
In a scathing dissent, Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan criticized the conservative majority for their hasty decision to allow Texas to use Republican-favoring maps in the 2026 midterms, disregarding an extensive ruling by a lower court. The court's decision effectively blocks a lower court's finding that the maps were likely the result of an unconstitutional racial gerrymander.
Kagan expressed her dismay at the majority's lack of evidence supporting their reversal of the lower court's ruling and failure to adhere to its own review standards. She emphasized that the district court conducted a thorough nine-day hearing involving over two dozen witnesses, introducing thousands of exhibits, and carefully assessing witness credibility before concluding that Texas had divided its citizens along racial lines in an attempt to create a pro-Republican House map.
The Supreme Court's decision has sparked outrage from Democrats, with several states considering their own partisan gerrymander to counterbalance the seat-swing in Texas. In response to this challenge, California voters recently passed a proposition to redraw their maps in a way that favors Democrats.
Kagan took aim at President Donald Trump, who played a significant role in pushing for these redistricting changes. She highlighted how Trump framed the unusual process as a legal necessity and noted the court's casual dismissal of the extensive evidence presented by the district court. Kagan emphasized that while the Supreme Court is technically a higher court than the lower court, its decision "is not a better one" in terms of making fact-based decisions like this one.
The outcome of this decision guarantees that the new maps will be used for the 2026 midterms, potentially undermining voting rights and perpetuating partisan politics.
... it feels like our democracy is being manipulated on purpose 
. Justice Kagan's words really got me thinking - how can we trust the system when evidence just isn't considered? It's heartbreaking to see people's votes potentially being undervalued because of politics 
. I'm trying to stay hopeful that states are taking steps to protect voting rights and create fair maps, but it's tough not to feel frustrated and disheartened 
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it's just so frustrating when you think about all the folks who are genuinely interested in making a positive change, but they're constantly being shut down by people who are more concerned with winning at all costs 
she's doing her best to stand up for what's right, even when it's hard 
it's all about who's got the power and influence at the moment sadly
. i mean kagan's right though, it's crazy that trump's influence on this decision is still being felt. california's move to redraw their maps is definitely a response to this... it's like they're saying "hey, we won't let you do the same thing here" 
. i guess we'll just have to wait and see how this all plays out with the 2026 midterms... 
they just overturned a lower court's ruling without even looking at all the evidence?? it's like they're just rubber stamping whatever the majority wants 
and now texas can basically draw their own maps to rig the election 
meanwhile kagan is over here throwing shade at trump for playing politics with gerrymandering 
and i'm just over here thinking why not just do a thorough job of reviewing all the evidence like they did in the lower court? 
this decision is just gonna perpetuate more partisan politics and undermine voting rights 
it's like they just winged it and now Texas is gonna get to manipulate its maps however they want... ugh, can you imagine trying to vote in an election with those maps? 
and yeah, California passing that proposition to redraw their own maps is a good move - at least we've got some states that are fighting back against this partisan nonsense 
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what's really surprising is that Elena Kagan called them out on this - she's basically saying the Supreme Court just blew it big time with this decision 
she's literally scathing in her dissent and i gotta say i kinda agree with her 
i'm loving that california voters took matters into their own hands with that proposition tho 
we need more people standing up like justice kagan and fighting for what's right 
And to think they're using this to block voting rights and basically give politicians an unfair advantage... it's just not right 
And now Justice Kagan is basically calling him out for it - I'm not surprised she's speaking truth to power 
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️ to keep politicians in power by any means necessary. The Supreme Court's ruling is a slap in the face to democracy 
and will only serve to further disenfranchise voters 
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. It's wild that President Trump was behind all this and the court just casually dismissed all the evidence 
️ California even passed a proposition to redraw their maps in a way that favors Democrats 