Purcell Principle Archives | American Democracy Minute

Federal Panel Allows California’s Gerrymandered Counterpunch to Five More GOP Congressional Seats in Texas. Will a Politicized SCOTUS Block It?

January 15, 2026January 15, 2026

January 14th, a 9th Circuit federal court panel rejected a GOP claim that California’s new congressional districts were racially gerrymandered. The court said the Proposition 50 maps, created as a counterpunch to gerrymandering in Texas, were manipulated for partisan, not racial reasons.

U.S. Supreme Court Majority Embraces Texas Redistricting, Ignores District Court Panel Racial Gerrymandering Findings

December 7, 2025December 16, 2025

The U.S. Supreme Court handed the State of Texas and the Trump administration a huge win December 4th, overruling a district court panel’s compelling racial gerrymandering findings. The gerrymandered maps likely deliver five more GOP congressional seats in the 2026 midterms.

The Purcell Principle, Often Used in the SCOTUS Shadow Docket, Will Be Argued in the Texas Gerrymandering Decision. What is it?

November 25, 2025November 25, 2025

The Purcell Principle is supposed to keep last minute changes in election law from creating chaos before and during elections. It’s also been unevenly applied in lower courts and the U.S. Supreme Court’s so-called ‘shadow docket', and is being argued again in the current Texas racial gerrymandering case.

VA Legislature Sends Several Pro-Voter Bills to Gov. Youngkin, and a Constitutional Amendment Restoring Returning Citizen Rights to Voters

February 25, 2025February 25, 2025

In the coming weeks, Virginia GOP Governor Glenn Youngkin considers multiple pro-voter bills sent to his desk by a Democratic-majority legislature. A state constitutional amendment also moves to the November ballot which restores voting rights to returning citizens after felony convictions.

PA Supreme Court Refuses to Rehear Mail-In Ballot Missing Date Appeal and Others As Too Close to the Election

October 7, 2024October 7, 2024

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court refused to rehear a challenge to mail-in ballots with missing or inaccurate dates on the merits, after dismissing the case on a technicality in September. But it also denied a GOP challenge of counties which notified mail-in voters of a mistake, and allowed them to ‘cure’ their ballot.