CASE SUMMARY

On March 15, 2022, a Washington voter filed a federal lawsuit against Washington's Secretary of State challenging one of the legislative districts adopted by the Washington State Redistricting Commission's as an unconstitutional racial gerrymander. Specifically, plaintiff asserts race was the Commission's predominant consideration when it drew Legislative District 15 in the Yakima Valley to have a 50.02% Latino Citizen Voting Age Population, and such use of race violates the 14th Amendment's Equal Protection Clause because it was not justified by any compelling governmental interest, citing the Commission's failure to conduct any racial voting pattern analyses for Voting Rights Act compliance purposes. He is seeking a judicial declaration that Legislative District 15 is an unconstitutional racial gerrymander, a permanent injunction barring the defendant from using the district in future elections, and a court order requiring the creation of a new, valid legislative districting plan.

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U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, Tacoma - No. 3:22-cv-5152

Garcia v. Hobbs
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