Columbia, South Carolina – A federal court ruling on Thursday allowed South Carolina to use its existing congressional district map this year, despite earlier findings that the map was unconstitutional. The decision came after a panel of judges determined that the state had “exiled” 30,000 Black voters from the district to benefit a White GOP incumbent, Rep. Nancy Mace.
The ruling last year by two judges nominated by President Barack Obama and one by President Biden found that the South Carolina legislature had engaged in racial gerrymandering by splitting neighborhoods in the Charleston area to favor Mace’s reelection. The panel concluded that over 30,000 African American citizens were unfairly removed from their previous district.
South Carolina sought permission to use the contested map for this year’s election, citing the upcoming primary on June 11 and the lack of a remedy in place while the Supreme Court has yet to rule. The judges unanimously agreed to allow the existing map to be used, bending the rules due to the practical constraints of the time frame.
In October, the state argued before the Supreme Court that race was not the primary factor in drawing the maps, but rather political considerations guided the process. Despite indications from a majority of the justices during arguments that they were inclined to reinstate the lines requested by the state, no ruling has been issued five months later.
The continued delay in the Supreme Court’s decision effectively left the state with no time to redraw the maps for this year’s election cycle. Candidates must file paperwork by Monday, and under federal law, ballots must be sent to military and overseas voters by April 27, further limiting the window for legal proceedings.
Critics of the legislature’s inaction in redrawing the map decried the decision to maintain the existing boundaries, arguing that it perpetuates voter suppression and undermines democracy in the state. The American Civil Liberties Union’s voting rights project deputy director, Adriel Cepeda Derieux, condemned the lack of action as detrimental to the democratic process.
If the Supreme Court ultimately upholds the lower court ruling, new maps will need to be drawn for the 2026 election. Until then, South Carolina will proceed with the current map for the upcoming election.