Supreme Court Reinstates Racial Gerrymander Lawsuit in Arkansas

The U.S. Supreme Court on June 3 revived a lawsuit contesting the boundaries of a congressional district in Arkansas that challengers say illegally diluted the voting strength of the black community. The ruling comes days after the court rejected a claim that a congressional district in South Carolina was an unconstitutional racial gerrymander. The court issued its decision in an unsigned order in Simpson v. Thurston. No justices dissented. The court did not explain its decision. The decision sends the case back to U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas. The ruling comes after the Supreme Court upheld on a vote of 6-3 a congressional redistricting plan in South Carolina. In the May 23 decision the court rejected the claim that the new electoral map was a product of race-based discrimination....