Supreme Court Delivers Blow To Republicans, Declines To Take Up Pa. Redistricting
The U.S. Supreme Court declined to take up a Republican challenge to the newly drawn Pennsylvania congressional map ahead of the 2018 elections.
The decision means Republicans have few, if any, options remaining to try to stem a map that will almost certainly result in Democrats picking up potentially three or four seats and could make half a dozen or more competitive.
Tuesday is the filing deadline for candidates for Pennsylvania's May 15 primaries.
Last month, the Supreme Court also declined to block the state court decision that said the old GOP-drawn map violated the Pennsylvania Constitution.
Republicans drew a gerrymandered map in 2011 that resulted in a 13-5 congressional district advantage. That was despite Democrats having won the state in five straight presidential elections at the time.
Democrats need to win a net of 24 seats to win a majority in the U.S. House.
The decision comes on the same day a federal court dismissed a lawsuit filed by Republican congressmen challenging the new map. It's a double gut punch to the GOP and all but guarantees that Democrats pick up a few seats, and in an election with control of Congress at stake, every seat counts.
Legally, the challenge could also open the path to a slew of state court challenges.