New York ruling could accelerate a Supreme Court shake-up of race-based redistricting

A New York judge’s Williams v. Board of Elections ruling relies on state constitutional provisions to justify redrawing a district as a crossover district, a move that could weaken federal Voting Rights Act protections and provide the Supreme Court with a vehicle to limit or overturn race-conscious redistricting like Gingles. The case mirrors questions in Louisiana v. Callais and, if the Court accepts it, could hasten map redraws ahead of 2026. Malliotakis also urges adopting the Independent State Legislature theory, which Moore v. Harper rejected, but a ruling compatible with that theory would dramatically reshape federal election oversight—though New York’s appellate courts could intervene to avert Supreme Court involvement.