The federal court’s decision paves the way for the lawsuit to move forward to trial, starting on Sept. 5, 2023
ATLANTA—Today, a federal court denied the State of Georgia’s motion for summary judgment in a lawsuit challenging state House and Senate district lines which deny Black voters an equal opportunity to participate in the political process. The ACLU of Georgia, the American Civil Liberties Union, and WilmerHale issued the following statements on the court’s decision:
“We applaud the court’s decision to deny the State’s motion and move forward with trial,” said Rahul Garabadu, Senior Voting Rights Staff Attorney at the ACLU of Georgia. “We look forward to presenting evidence at trial to ensure that Georgia voters have fair maps in advance of the 2024 election cycle.”
"Georgia’s state legislative maps dilute the voting strength of Black Georgians in violation of the Voting Rights Act. The maps rob Black voters of the right to engage in politics with equal dignity and equal opportunity. This ruling is a victory and we look forward to proving our case at trial," said Sophia Lin Lakin, co-director of the ACLU’s Voting Rights Project.
“We are pleased with Judge Jones’s decision today and look forward to working alongside the ACLU to continue the fight to secure voting rights in Georgia,” said the law firm WilmerHale.
Read the court’s decision here.
Background:
The ACLU of Georgia, the ACLU and WilmerHale filed the federal lawsuit, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. v. Raffensperger, on Dec. 30, 2021, challenging the district lines as unlawfully minimizing the voting strength of Black Georgians. These new maps violate Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
In the last decade, citizens who are Black drove Georgia’s significant population growth, yet the state Legislature failed to draw district lines that would allow these new voters to elect their preferred leaders. According to the lawsuit, the Georgia General Assembly could have — and should have — drawn more than a half-dozen additional new Black-majority districts in light of the tremendous growth of the state’s Black population over the last decade.
With today’s decision, trial is set to begin on Sept. 5, 2023.
