Top Court Rules States Free to Redistrict

Front of the U.S. Supreme Court building. The Court on Wednesday, June 28, 2006, upheld most of the Texas congressional map engineered by former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay but threw out part, saying some of the new boundaries failed to protect minority voting rights. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta) (Manuel Balce Ceneta - AP)

Hector Flores, president of the League of United Latin American Citizens, said the organization was prepared to go to court next week to press its claim that the Texas redistricting violated the voting rights of Hispanics.

If the ruling's impact on the 2006 elections was unclear, so, too, the longer-term consequences.

Under the Constitution, states are required to adjust their congressional district lines to account for population shifts following the national census, held every decade.

The ruling freed states to readjust the lines more frequently _ potentially whenever political power shifts _ so long as they do not run afoul of the Voting Rights Act or other laws designed to protect the right to vote.

Even so, Richard Hasen, an election law expert at Loyola Law School, said he doubted there would be a rush to change. "Some people are predicting a rash of mid-decade redistricting. I am skeptical," he said.

With the House narrowly divided, both parties have shown interest in following the lead set by the GOP in Texas.

Republicans pushed through a redistricting in Georgia after the 2004 election. The result was a new set of political boundaries designed to protect Rep. Phil Gingrey from a Democratic challenge while increasing the chances for GOP opponents to Democratic Reps. John Barrow and Jim Marshall.

Democratic strategists in Congress pressed for new district lines in three states after the last election. None of the efforts came to fruition, though. Officials said Wednesday that Democratic governors balked in all three states.

The result is that the congressional boundaries in those states are unchanged, a disappointment for Democrats hoping to increase the number of competitive seats this fall as they try to overthrow the Republican majority.

The court's ruling came in a case in which Texas Republicans embraced controversy at the prodding of DeLay. When they gained control of the state House of Representatives in 2002, he drafted a plan that the GOP eventually pushed through the Legislature.

The result was a gain of several seats for Republicans in 2004. The GOP now has 21 seats in Texas to 11 for the Democrats. Democrats had a 17-15 majority before the shift.

DeLay paid an enormous price. He was indicted on state charges in connection with alleged money-laundering during the 2002 campaign for legislative seats, stepped down as majority leader in the House of Representatives, and eventually resigned this month from Congress.