Editorial: Victory for Children and Immigrants
The Supreme Court rejects the attacks against the electoral principle of “one person, one vote” principle
Crédito: Jonathan Gibby | Getty Images)
Children and immigrants are among the people who won a significant victory yesterday when the Supreme Court ratified that they must be counted when drawing voting districts, even if they cannot vote. The unanimous decision guarantees the current interpretation of “one person, one vote” for political representation.
A conservative organization named Project on Fair Representation had sued the State of Texas stating that voting districts ‒ which are redrawn every 10 years ‒ should be determined exclusively by the number of eligible voters, ignoring the people who are unable to cast a ballot. The purpose of the complaint was to lessen the power of urban districts where Latinos mostly live, giving it to rural districts where white people constitute the majority.
The judges rightfully decided that the priority is for all residents of a district ‒ regardless of age or immigration status ‒ to be represented by an elected politician, not just those who vote.
This signifies a defeat for the conservative group led by Edward Blum. Unfortunately, a few years ago, in his mission to find legal ways to limit voter participation, he scored a victory in court regarding the Voting Rights Act that is already hurting minority voters, as evidenced during the recent Arizona primary.
The controversial decision eliminated the requirement for the federal government to oversee a group of states with a history of voter exclusion when they decide to change voting rules. One of those states is Arizona.
In Maricopa County, the largest in that state and home to most of its Latino voters, County Recorder Helen Purcell ‒ a Republican ‒ reduced the number of voting sites from 200 to 60, or more than 70%. This left the county with one voting location for every 21,000 voters, causing great inconvenience to Democratic and minority voters. The rest of the state has one voting site for every 2,500 inhabitants.
Yesterday, representative democracy earned a victory. However, the threat against minority voter participation is clear and present, forcing us all to keep a watchful eye on the November election.
