Supreme Court punts gerrymandering back to states

The U.S. Supreme Court issued rulings Monday resolving two state disputes over gerrymandering but leaving open questions about how states draw political districts. The justices unanimously ruled against Wisconsin Democrats who challenged legislative districts that gave Republicans a huge edge in the state legislature. The high court said the plaintiffs in that case failed to prove they had the right to sue on a statewide basis rather than challenge individual districts. In a separate unsigned opinion, the court ruled against Maryland Republicans who objected to a single congressional district. Both cases will proceed in lower courts. “This is definitely not the end of the road,” said Sachin Chheda, director of the Fair Elections Project, which organized the Wisconsin lawsuit. “There is no vindication for the state’s rigging of the maps and disenfranchising of our voters here.”