BISMARCK, ND – A Washington, D.C., based nonpartisan legal organization says they’ve filed a motion to stay a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit regarding fair representation.
The plaintiffs in the motion are the Turtle Mountain Ban of Chippewa Indians, Spirit Lake Tribe and individuals Wesley Davis, Zachery King and Collette Brown – and represented by multiple co-counsel, including the Campaign Legal Center. The defendant is North Dakota Secretary of State Michael Howe.
“Voters in North Dakota, throughout the Eighth Circuit, and across the United States, deserve fair maps — maps that allow voters an equal voice in our democracy. For sixty years, voters have sued to enforce their right under Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act to voting maps free from racial discrimination. Native Americans in North Dakota vindicated their rights at trial and won a fair map, after facing a long history of discrimination,” said Mark Gaber, senior director of redistricting at Campaign Legal Center. “We will fight to make sure the Supreme Court preserves the right of all voters to sue under the Voting Rights Act to stop discriminatory maps and voting laws.”
