Supreme Court Rules Partisan Gerrymandering Claims Are Beyond Federal Courts' Reach -- Rucho v. Common Cause

In a 5-4 decision, Chief Justice Roberts wrote that partisan gerrymandering claims present "political questions beyond the reach of the federal courts," effectively closing federal courts as a venue for challenging extreme partisan maps. The case arose from North Carolina's extreme congressional gerrymander (10-3 GOP in a state that was evenly divided). Justice Kagan's dissent warned: "For the first time ever, the Court refuses to remedy a constitutional violation because it thinks the task beyond judicial capabilities." The ruling greenlit state-level gerrymandering across the country.