Washington — A panel of federal district court judges in South Carolina said Thursday that the 2024 elections for a congressional district in the state can be conducted using a map it determined was racially gerrymandered.
The three judges overseeing the redistricting dispute granted a request from South Carolina Republican legislative leaders, who asked the court to reinstate the lines for Congressional District 1 that GOP state lawmakers drew following the 2020 Census.
The Republicans had asked the court to pause its own January 2023 decision invalidating the lines of the district, represented by GOP Rep. Nancy Mace, while it awaits a ruling from the Supreme Court on whether to uphold the map. They argued that the 2024 election cycle in South Carolina is now underway — the candidate-filing period opened March 16 and closes April 1 — and last-minute changes to congressional district lines and the state's election calendar would confuse voters and lead to disorder.
At least five candidates have filed to run in the primaries and have begun campaigning in Mace's coastal district, as well as the neighboring district represented by Democratic Rep. Jim Clyburn.
The decision was made by the judges in a brief five-page ruling, stating that due to the current circumstances, it is impractical for the court to implement a remedial plan for Congressional District 1 before the April 27 deadline for military and overseas ballots to be sent. The statewide primary elections in South Carolina are scheduled for June 11.
The panel of the district court acknowledged that they had determined the district to be unconstitutional under the 14th Amendment. However, they stated that "with the impending primary election procedures, the ongoing appeal before the Supreme Court, and the absence of a remedial plan, practicality must take precedence over ideals."
Republican leaders initially made their plea to the district court on March 7, but later requested urgent assistance from the Supreme Court on March 18 as the panel had not yet made a decision. The Supreme Court has not yet responded to the GOP lawmakers' plea for intervention.
The South Carolina State Conference of the NAACP and a voter challenged the Republican-drawn congressional voting map in federal district court during the 2021 redistricting process. South Carolina Republicans argued that they designed the district to favor Republicans. Mace narrowly secured the seat in 2020 but easily won re-election in the 2022 midterms after the new boundaries were put into effect.
In January 2023, a three-judge panel determined that state legislators had racially gerrymandered Congressional District 1 with discriminatory intent.
A recent ruling by the district court has put a halt on state elections for Mace's district until a constitutionally valid plan is approved by lawmakers. The GOP-led legislature has been given a deadline, extending 30 days after the Supreme Court makes a ruling, to submit new boundaries. Additionally, elections under the current GOP-drawn lines for Congressional District 1 will be prohibited after the 2024 election cycle.
The Supreme Court has been reviewing whether Republican lawmakers improperly considered race as the main factor in drawing the lines for Congressional District 1. Both GOP legislative leaders and the NAACP have urged the Supreme Court to issue a ruling by January 1st, but the deadline has passed without any decision.
Although the timing of the Supreme Court's ruling remains uncertain, the court seemed doubtful of the lower court's decision during the fall arguments.
