Use the excerpt from the Supreme Court case Bartlett v. Strickland to answer the question.

“In the plurality’s view, only a district with a minority population making up 50% or more of the citizen voting age population (CVAP) can provide a remedy to minority voters lacking an opportunity “to elect representatives of their choice.”

How would this decision affect potential redistricting?

(1 point)
Responses

Districts could be redrawn based solely on geography.
Districts could be redrawn based solely on geography.

Districts could be redrawn to provide a fair electoral outcome.
Districts could be redrawn to provide a fair electoral outcome.

Creating districts based solely on race are constitutional.
Creating districts based solely on race are constitutional.

In districts with less than 50 percent minority race voting populations, redistricting can combine districts to create a minority opportunity district.
In districts with less than 50 percent minority race voting populations, redistricting can combine districts to create a minority opportunity district.
Skip to navigation

1 answer

The decision in Bartlett v. Strickland suggests that in order for a district to effectively provide a remedy for minority voters who lack the opportunity to elect representatives of their choice, it must have a minority population that constitutes at least 50% of the citizen voting age population (CVAP). As a result, one key implication for potential redistricting is that:

In districts with less than 50 percent minority race voting populations, redistricting can combine districts to create a minority opportunity district.

This means that redistricting efforts might focus on combining areas with smaller minority populations to create districts where minorities can have a greater chance of being represented, provided that they meet the threshold set by the Supreme Court. Thus, the legal framework established by this decision would limit the strategies used in redistricting to ensure that minority voting power is adequately represented.