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Supreme Court to hear case that could give state legislatures power over federal elections

Dec. 7 (UPI) — The U.S. Supreme Court is set to hear arguments Wednesday on whether state legislatures should have the unilateral power to determine election rules through gerrymandering and other controversial tactics.

The eventual ruling by the high court could fundamentally reshape how federal elections are conducted in the future.

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The legal case, Moore vs. Harper, stems from a ruling by the North Carolina Supreme Court last February that found Republicans violated the state constitution by redrawing political maps that created as many as 11 red districts compared to just three for Democrats.

The crux of the case centers around the legal theory known as the “Independent State Legislature Doctrine.”

In its February ruling, the North Carolina Supreme Court called the theory “repugnant to the sovereignty of states, the authority of state constitutions and the independence of state courts, and would produce absurd and dangerous consequences.”

But North Carolina Republicans took the case to the U.S. Supreme Court, arguing that the legislative map should be restored because state courts lacked the constitutional authority to overturn legislative actions on elections.

The body of nine justices initially turned down a request for immediate intervention in March, and North Carolina officials hired experts to draw up a new electoral map for the November midterms that was evenly split between both parties.

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Although the nation’s highest court has never fully embraced the “Independent State Legislature” theory, four of the court’s six conservative justices have written previous opinions that seem to give it some merit.

The doctrine is based on a literal reading of the Elections Clause of the Constitution, which states: “The times, places and manner of holding elections for senators and representatives, shall be prescribed in each state by the legislature thereof.”

Constitutional hardliners have interpreted the phrase to mean that state legislatures hold singular and final authority over federal election results.

Proponents of this theory also argue that state supreme courts cannot subject election laws to state constitutions, and also believe a governor’s veto power should be suspended on all bills dealing with federal elections.

The principle goes further in tying the hands of election administrators, who would not be able to issue special or emergency regulations that limit the reach of strict new election laws. It would also become illegal for voters to form independent commissions to address redistricting.

Despite some of the more controversial aspects of the theory, three Supreme Court justices said they favored granting the emergency appeal that was ultimately turned down last March before the court agreed in June to take up the case.

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“This case presents an exceptionally important and recurring question of constitutional law,” conservative Justice Samuel Alito wrote in an opinion joined by Justices Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch.

Justice Brett Kavanaugh agreed, saying: “Namely the extent of a state court’s authority to reject rules adopted by a state legislature for use in conducting federal elections. The issue is almost certain to keep arising until the court definitively resolves it.”

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