BISMARCK, N.D. (KFGO) – North Dakota Attorney General Drew Wrigley says he’s evaluating a legal opinion from a federal appeals court panel which ruled Monday that only the US government, not private parties, can sue under a landmark civil rights law barring racial discrimination in voting. The decision would significantly hamper use of the Voting Rights Act to challenge ballot access, voting rules and redistricting.
Whether the appeals court’s decision will have any affect on a case in North Dakota is unclear. Last Friday, a federal judge in Fargo ruled that a 2021 redistricting plan approved by the legislature violated the rights of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa and Spirit Lake Nation. Wrigley says he’s reviewing the 8th Circuit’s opinion and its implications on the case and meeting with Sec. of State Michael Howe and legislative leadership to determine the state’s next step.
The ruling, which will likely be appealed, could set up the next voting rights battle at the US Supreme Court.
The 2-1 decision, from the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals, upheld a 2022 ruling from an Arkansas federal judge appointed by former republican President Trump, that only the US attorney general is empowered to file lawsuits under section 2 of the voting rights act. That provision prohibits voting rules that are racially discriminatory.
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