CASE SUMMARY

On March 21, 2022, a group of Arkansas voters filed a lawsuit against Arkansas’s Secretary of State and the members of the Arkansas State Board of Election Commissioners challenging the state’s enacted congressional redistricting plan as diluting Black voters’ voting strength in violation of the Arkansas Constitution’s Free and Equal Elections Clause (art. 2, § 3), Equal Protection guarantees (art. 2, §§ 2, 3), and Equal Rights Amendment (art. 2, § 18). They sought a judicial declaration that the plan was unconstitutional, an injunction barring its use in future elections, and a court order requiring the adoption of a new plan.

  • On April 22, 2022, the defendants filed a notice of removal to transfer the case to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas, but the case was sent back to the Pulaski County Superior Court on July 13 for lack of federal jurisdiction.
  • On May 11, 2023, the Pulaski County Superior Court dismissed the case for lack of subject matter jurisdiction.

CASE LIBRARY

Arkansas Circuit Court, Pulaski County - No. 60CV-22-1849

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas, Central Division - No. 4:22-cv-368

Arkansas Circuit Court, Pulaski County - No. 60CV-22-1849 [On remand]