The State of Texas will not be able to deviate from the way it draws its legislative districts.
The Supreme Court ruled Monday, unanimously, mind you, that the Lone Star State must continue drawing its districts based on total population rather than eligible voters.
Reuters reports that a conservative challenge to the one-person, one-vote standard sought to shift influence in state-wide races to rural areas and away from urban areas.
The Texas Tribune explains the reasoning behind the conservative challenge:
Last year, two Texas voters, Sue Evenwel of Mount Pleasant and Edward Pfenninger of Montgomery County north of Houston, brought a case to the Supreme Court arguing that Texas should divide its districts by the number of eligible voters, not by the total population. Evenwel and Pfenninger argued that the power of Pfenninger's vote was comparatively diminished because he had a greater proportion of non-voters in his districts.
The Supreme Court did not agree, saying such a move would fly in the face of Constitutional history.
