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North Carolina | Congress | State Upper | State Lower

Moore v. Harper (also N.C. League of Conservation Voters v. Hall, Harper v. Hall)

Last Updated Jun 27, 2023
Case No. 21CVS015426-910 (N.C. Super. Ct., Wake Cnty.); No. P21-525 (N.C. App. Ct.); No. 413PA21 (N.C. S. Ct.); Nos. 21A455, 22A289, 22A385, 21-1271 (U.S. S. Ct.)
Cycle 2020

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Case Information

** Note: in the U.S. Supreme Court, this case is about whether state courts and state constitutions constrain state legislatures in drawing congresional lines.  The case began as a consolidated challenge to state legislative and congressional lines under the state constitution, with cases named N.C. League of Conservation Voters v. Hall (this lead case) and Harper v. Hall.  Documents for the consolidated case can be found here. ** 

A state court challenge to the state legislative and congressional maps on grounds of partisan gerrymandering and racial vote dilution under the state constitution, and challenging the state legislative maps as violating protections for county boundaries under the state constitution.  Specifically, with respect to partisan gerrymandering, the complaint alleged that the plans violated the state’s constitutional guarantees of free, fair and honest elections (art. I, § 10), equal protection under the law (art. I, § 19), freedom of speech (art. I, § 12), and freedom of assembly (art. I, § 14).

This case was consolidated with a separate challenge (Harper v. Hall) alleging that the congressional map is a partisan gerrymander under the state constitution.  Common Cause intervened, alleging partisan gerrymandering and intentional racial discrimination, but also seeking a declaration that the legislature had the obligation under prior state Supreme Court ruings to ascertain which legislative districts were required by the VRA before drawing non-VRA districts.

On Dec. 3, 2021, the trial court denied a preliminary injunction.  On Dec. 8, 2021, on appeal, the state Supreme Court moved the state primaries from March to May, stayed candidate filing until final judgment, and ordered the trial court to proceed to expedited resolution of the merits.

On Jan. 11, 2022, the trial court rejected all of the substantive claims on the merits, and further found the partisan gerrymandering claims to be non-justiciable political questions.  On appeal, on Feb. 4, 2022, the state Supreme Court reversed, and struck down both the legislative and congressional redistricting maps as unlawful partisan gerrymanders.  The state Supreme Court also directed that the legislature assess the existence of racially polarized voting in order to comply with any requirement under the Voting Rights Act before satisfying other criteria under state law.

The legislature enacted remedial plans on Feb. 17, 2022.  On Feb. 23, 2022, the trial court accepted the state legislative plans but found that the remedial congressional plan was also an unconstitutional partisan gerrymander, and instead adopted an interim congressional plan for 2022 recommended by special masters.  On appeal, on Dec. 16, 2022, the state Supreme Court affirmed the rejection of the congressional plan and the acceptance of the state House plan, but reversed with respect to the state Senate plan and ordered a new state Senate plan to be drawn.

On June 30, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court granted cert. on the question whether the federal Constitution’s Elections Clause allows state courts and state constitutions to constrain state legislatures in drawing congressional lines.  On June 27, 2023, the Court rejected the “independent state legislature” theory, holding that the Elections Clause does not exempt state legislatures from the ordinary constraints imposed by state law.  Federal review would be available only for the exceptional state court actions that “transgress the ordinary bounds of judicial review.”

On Feb. 3, 2023, after elections to the state Supreme Court, that court granted state legislators’ petition to rehear the appeal from the remedial maps.  On Apr. 28, 2023, the state Supreme Court overturned its earlier opinions in full, finding that the constitutional provisions cited in the complaint do not prohibit partisan gerrymandering.  The state Supreme Court also overturned its earlier process ruling, affirming that legislative districts required by the VRA have to be drawn before non-VRA districts, but disclaiming the requirement of any particular procedure to effectuate that goal.  The state Supreme Court remanded for the legislature to draw new state legislative and congressional maps without state-law constraints on partisanship beyond contiguity, compactness, and county boundary preservation.

History

Case filings, starting with most recent court
    Name Last Modified
Document icon Leg. petition requesting rehearing Jan 20, 2023
Highlighted document Document icon Order granting rehearing Feb 3, 2023
Document icon Leg. brief Feb 17, 2023
Document icon Plaintiffs' joint brief Mar 3, 2023
Highlighted document Document icon Opinion overturning prior decision Apr 28, 2023
    Name Last Modified
Document icon Leg. petition for cert. (incl. app.) Mar 17, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Nat'l Republican Redistricting Trust Apr 20, 2022
Document icon NCLCV et al. opposition May 20, 2022
Document icon Harper et al. opposition May 20, 2022
Document icon Common Cause opposition May 20, 2022
Document icon State opposition May 20, 2022
Document icon Leg. reply May 27, 2022
Highlighted document Document icon Order granting cert. Jun 30, 2022
Document icon Leg. brief Aug 29, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of America First Legal Sep 6, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of America's Future Sep 6, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Amer. Legis. Exchange Council Sep 6, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of APA Watch Sep 6, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Arkansas et al. Sep 6, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Citizens United et al. Sep 6, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Claremont Inst. Sep 6, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Honest Elections Project Sep 6, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Lawyers Democracy Fund et al. Sep 6, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Nat'l Republican Redistricting Trust Sep 6, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Pub. Int. Legal Found. Sep 6, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Restoring Integrity & Trust in Elections Sep 2, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of RNC et al. Sep 6, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Taxpayers for Honest Elections Sep 6, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Pa. Sen. Kim Ward et al. Sep 2, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of White House Watch Aug 31, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Ariz. Ind. Redistricting Comm. Sep 6, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Mo. SOS John Ashcroft Sep 2, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Conf. of Chief Justices Sep 6, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of group of NY voters Sep 6, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Wis. Voter Alliance et al. Sep 2, 2022
Document icon Joint plaintiffs' brief Oct 19, 2022
Document icon State brief Oct 19, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of the United States Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of ABA Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of ACLU et al. Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Prof. Akhil Reed Amar et al. Oct 24, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Anti-Defamation League et al. Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Prof. Evan Bernick Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of NC Sen. Blue et al. Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of bipartisan current & former election officials Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of bipartisan former Pa. public officials Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Brennan Center Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of BU Ctr. for Antiracist Research et al. Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Campaign Legal Ctr. et al. Oct 25, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Colo. SOS et al. Apr 26, 2023
Document icon Amicus brief of Const. Accountability Ctr. Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of current & former election admins. Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Brief of DC et al. Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of democracy and race scholars Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of FairDistricts Now Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of former Republican officials Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Benjamin Ginsberg Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Eugene Goldberg Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Thomas Griffith et al. Oct 20, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Prof. Richard Hasen Oct 25, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Human Rights Watch Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Sen. Amy Klobuchar et al. Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Law Forward et al. Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Lawyers' Committee et al. Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Lawyers Defending Amer. Democracy Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of League of Women Voters et al. Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of local gov't law profs. Oct 25, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Making Every Vote Count et al. Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Prof. Derek Muller Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of NAACP LDF Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Nat'l Ass'n of Counties et al. Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Charles Plambeck et al. Oct 25, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Public Citizen Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Puerto Rico House of Rep. Oct 25, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of retired 4-star admirals and generals et al. Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Michael Rosin Oct 24, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of scholars of state const. law Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of scholars of the founding era Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Gov. Arnold Schwartzenegger Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Carolyn Shapiro et al. Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Stephen Shapiro Oct 24, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of state const. historians Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of William Treanor Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse et al. Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Women4Change Indiana Oct 26, 2022
Document icon Leg. reply Nov 18, 2022
Document icon Transcript of oral argument Dec 7, 2022
    Name Last Modified
Document icon Leg. application for stay Feb 25, 2022
Document icon State opposition Mar 2, 2022
Document icon Harper et al. opposition Mar 2, 2022
Document icon NCLCV et al. opposition Mar 2, 2022
Document icon Common Cause opposition Mar 2, 2022
Document icon Leg. reply Mar 3, 2022
Highlighted document Document icon Order denying stay Mar 7, 2022
    Name Last Modified
Document icon NCLCV et al. petition Feb 23, 2022
Document icon Harper et al. petition Feb 23, 2022
Document icon Common Cause petition Feb 23, 2022
Document icon Leg. petition Feb 23, 2022
Document icon Leg. opp. to plaintiffs' petitions Feb 23, 2022
Document icon Amicus brief of Gov. & AG Feb 23, 2022
Highlighted document Document icon Orders denying immediate relief Feb 23, 2022

Map | Challenged congressional plan

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Map | Challenged state Senate plan

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Map | Challenged state House plan

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Map | Interim congressional plan (Feb. 2022)

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Map | Remedial state Senate plan (Feb. 2022)

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Map | Remedial state House plan (Feb. 2002)

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Additional Cases

(consolidated) State court challenge to congressional plan as unconstitutional partisan gerrymander
Cycle 2020
State court preemptive challenge to potential state legislative and congressional redistricting plans.
Cycle 2020
State court struck 2016 congressional plan as unlawful partisan gerrymander
Cycle 2010