WASHINGTON, D.C.— In a new brief filed today before the U.S. Supreme Court, the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) argued that, despite the plaintiffs’ erroneous claims that the plan is a racial gerrymander designed to “favor Hispanic voters,” Proposition 50 is clearly a partisan gerrymander. The Supreme Court has consistently said partisan gerrymanders are not justiciable by the federal courts. Democracy Defenders Action intervened in the case on behalf of LULAC.

After a three-judge federal panel cleared the way for Proposition 50 to go into effect for the 2026 elections, the California Republican Party, a state legislator, and a group of California residents appealed the case to the Supreme Court. The appeal comes amid a wave of redistricting litigation nationwide and follows years of Supreme Court rulings that have allowed states broad latitude to redraw maps based on partisan considerations.

LULAC’s brief today shows that the Applicants fail to meet the high legal burden required of them at this stage. It further demonstrates how the law and the evidence refute the government’s narrative and prove that the Proposition 50 maps should be left in place.

“The federal three-judge panel in California found that the mountain of evidence in this case all points to a pure partisan gerrymander,” said Roman Palomares, LULAC National President and Chairman. “We are hopeful the Supreme Court will deny this cynical effort to distort what is clearly a nonjusticiable, partisan gerrymander–designed to serve as a counterweight to Republican gerrymandering taking place across the country.”

At a three-day hearing in defense of the redistricting legislation last month, LULAC presented factual and expert testimony. The organization is the largest and oldest Latino civil rights organization in the country, with over 575,000 members nationwide and more than 40,000 members in California.

“Democracy Defenders Action is proud to stand with LULAC in this case,” said Tianna Mays, Litigation Director. “It is obvious that Proposition 50 is a partisan gerrymander, but it is also important to counter plaintiffs’ logic that a map should be constitutionally suspect any time it happens to increase Latino representation.”

“Two years ago, the Supreme Court forewarned that partisans who lost during a redistricting process would try to repackage a partisan gerrymander as a racial gerrymander to subvert the Court’s decisions barring partisan gerrymandering claims. That is exactly what happened here,” said Jon Greenbaum, founder of Justice Legal Strategies, who co-counseled with Democracy Defenders Action. “Plaintiffs recasting the expressly partisan California Proposition 50 plan approved by 7 million voters as a plan that favors Latinos is not only false, but a shameless attempt to scapegoat the Latino community that has had to fight inch by inch for its voting rights.”

Read the brief HERE

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Democracy Defenders Action brings together a nonpartisan team to work with national, state, and local allies across the country to defend in real-time the foundations of our democracy.

The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) is the nation's oldest and largest Latino civil rights organization. Founded in 1929, LULAC is committed to advancing the rights and opportunities of Latino Americans through advocacy, community building, and education. For more information about LULAC and its initiatives, please visit www.lulac.org.