Litigation

Litigation | Alaska

Wilson v. Alaska Redistricting Board

May 24, 2022

Topic Tags: 14th Amendment | Commissions | Legislative Redistricting | Redistricting Procedures

CASE SUMMARY

On December 9, 2021, a group of Alaskan voters filed a state lawsuit against the Alaska Redistricting Board challenging the Board’s adopted legislative redistricting plan and redistricting process as violating various state constitutional and legal redistricting provisions. Petitioners alleged the Board violated the Alaska Open Meetings Act and the Alaska Constitution’s public hearings requirement by working on maps during executive sessions closed to the public, including making a final decision on Senate district pairings. Additionally, they claimed several Senate district pairings were “irrational and arbitrary” in violation of the U.S. Constitution’s Due Process Clause and the Alaska Constitution’s Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses, and that the pairing of Eagle River and East Anchorage districts violated the state constitution’s contiguity requirement. They sought a declaration the Board’s actions and plan were unlawful and a court order either requiring the Board to remedy violations in its plan or adopting the petitioners’ own proposed plan.

On December 14, 2021, the Superior Court consolidated this case with four other pending challenges to Alaska’s legislative plan and transferred them to the Alaska Superior Court in Anchorage.
On February 15, 2022, the court held the Board’s actions did violate the constitutional public hearings requirement and the Alaska Open Meetings Act. It also held the Board violated the petitioners’ Due Process Rights and the Alaska Constitution’s public input requirements when reviewing and deciding on House District 3 and Senate District K but rejected the petitioners’ contiguity claims. The court remanded the plan to the Board with instructions to remedy the violations it identified but the Board appealed to the Alaska Supreme Court on March 2, 2022.
On March 25, 2022, the Alaska Supreme Court affirmed the superior court’s decision as to House Districts 29 and 30 but reversed and struck down House District 36 as non-compact. It also affirmed the superior court’s decision that Senate District K’s pairing of House districts was an unconstitutional political gerrymander under the Alaska Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause. Finally, it reversed the decision requiring a “hard look” analysis of House District 3 after finding it was constitutional. The Court remanded the plan back to the Redistricting Board to correct the violations.
On April 13, 2022, the Board adopted a revised legislative plan. Five days later, several petitioners filed a motion asking the superior court to reject the revised plan on the grounds Senate District K was still a partisan gerrymander.
On May 16, 2022, the superior court struck down the revised legislative plan as an unconstitutional partisan gerrymander under the Alaska Constitution. Noting the looming 2022 primary election, the court ordered the Board to implement the proposed remedial plan “Option 2” for interim use in the 2022 elections and remanded the plan back to the Board with instructions to adopt a lawful remedial plan for the remainder of the decade. The Board appealed to the Alaska Supreme Court the next day.
The Alaska Supreme Court initially stayed the superior court’s ruling but, on May 24, 2022, the Court affirmed the superior court’s decision and order requiring the use of “Option 2” as an interim plan for the 2022 elections. The Court released its full opinion on April 21, 2023.
On May 15, 2023, the Alaska Redistricting Board adopted the 2022 interim redistricting plan as the final legislative plan for the remainder of the decade.

For a complete list of filings in this case, see the litigation page for Matanuska-Susitna Borough v. Alaska Redistricting Board.

CASE LIBRARY

Alaska Superior Court, Third Judicial District at Anchorage - No. 3AN-21-08869CI

Complaint - 12/9/21
Amended Presiding Judges' Statewide Consolidation and Venue Order - 12/14/21
Pretrial Order - 12/15/21
Second Pretrial Order - 12/21/21
Order Regarding Discovery Hearing Submissions - 12/21/21
Order of the Alaska Supreme Court - 12/23/21
Fourth Pretrial Order - 1/4/22
Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law - 2/15/22

Alaska Supreme Court - No. S-18332 [together with Nos. S18328, S-18329, S-18330, S-18332]

Alaska Superior Court, Third Judicial District at Anchorage - No. 3AN-21-08869CI

Motion to Reject Amended Redistricting Proclamation Plan and for Modification of Order on Remand - 4/18/22

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