Thread by @KimberlyEAtkins

BREAKING: #SCOTUS rules that political gerrymandering is an issue outside the scope of judicial review. 5-4 vote. This is unlike racial gerrymandering, which the #SCOTUS has held is unconstitutional.

The case came down to what test courts could employ to decide how much partisan gerrymandering is too much. The conservative justices said there was no good test to use. Chief Justice Roberts famously called the tests preferred by the challengers “sociological gobbledygook.”

The North Carolina challenge involved GOP-drawn congressional maps. The Maryland case involved Democratic-drawn maps. Both were sent back to the lower court to be dismissed.

In application, this ruling will benefit Republicans, who faced far more partisan gerrymandering challenges, some of which were successful in lower courts. Those decisions will now be vacated and the districts will be allowed to stand.