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Travis Crum

@traviscrum.bsky.social
7.5K followers 450 following 70 posts

Treiman Professor of Law, Washington University in St. Louis. Writing and Teaching about Voting Rights and Constitutional Law.

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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Thrilled to announce that I'll be an @nbcnews.com contributor for the 2026 midterm elections!! Talking head appearances to come. Meanwhile, check out this piece by @lawrencehurley.bsky.social that connects the USPS ballot case and the Missouri redistricting mess. www.nbcnews.com/politics/sup...
nbcnews.com
Supreme Court pushes back against Trump and GOP ahead of the midterm elections
The Supreme Court’s recent rulings on mail-in ballots and redistricting foreshadow a frosty reception to further attempts to change the rules before the election, experts said.
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
Thanks to @epps.bsky.social for the Marbury reference
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Some additional thoughts on the U.S. Supreme Court's grant of a stay in the Missouri redistricting dispute, which means the 2022 map will be used in November. electionlawblog.org/2026/supreme...
electionlawblog.org
Supreme Court Grants Stay in Missouri Redistricting Dispute, Meaning the 2022 Map Will Be Used for the 2026 Midterms #ELB
You can find the order here. Unlike in the last shadow docket dispute, Justice Kavanaugh referred this matter to the entire Court, and the absence of public dissents will hopefully send an (even) stro...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
The Missouri redistricting saga continues... electionlawblog.org/2026/reports...
electionlawblog.org
Reports of the Missouri Redistricting Saga’s Death Have Been Greatly Exaggerated #ELB
Forgive the Mark Twain allusion, but I couldn’t resist paraphrasing a fellow Missourian. As Rick and Derek have already noted, the Missouri redistricting litigation took a surprising turn today. I agr...
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Rick Hasen @rickhasen.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
#ELB: Further Developments in the Missouri Redistricting Saga electionlawblog.org/2026/further-de…
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
Missouri now admits that the referendum on the Missouri First congressional redistricting plan will be on the November 2026 ballot. Did Missouri concede away its redistricting case on the shadow docket?? electionlawblog.org/2026/did-mis...
electionlawblog.org
Did Missouri Concede Away Its Redistricting Case on the Shadow Docket? #ELB
As Rick and Ned have flagged, Missouri has moved for a stay of the Missouri Supreme Court’s decision that (1) put the referendum on repealing the 2025 “Missouri First” map on the November 2026 ballot ...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
Missouri now admits that the referendum on the Missouri First congressional redistricting plan will be on the November 2026 ballot. Did Missouri concede away its redistricting case on the shadow docket?? electionlawblog.org/2026/did-mis...
electionlawblog.org
Did Missouri Concede Away Its Redistricting Case on the Shadow Docket? #ELB
As Rick and Ned have flagged, Missouri has moved for a stay of the Missouri Supreme Court’s decision that (1) put the referendum on repealing the 2025 “Missouri First” map on the November 2026 ballot ...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
My thoughts on the Missouri redistricting fiasco. The blame lies squarely with Secretary of State Hoskins, who played hardball, lost, and is running to SCOTUS to get him out of a mess that he created. electionlawblog.org/2026/missour...
electionlawblog.org
Missouri's Gamesmanship and the Purcell Principle #ELB
Yesterday, in Von Glahn v. Hoskins, the Missouri Supreme Court unanimously held that the Missouri Constitution permits a referendum on congressional redistricting maps, thereby putting on hold the so-...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
My thoughts on the Missouri redistricting fiasco. The blame lies squarely with Secretary of State Hoskins, who played hardball, lost, and is running to SCOTUS to get him out of a mess that he created. electionlawblog.org/2026/missour...
electionlawblog.org
Missouri's Gamesmanship and the Purcell Principle #ELB
Yesterday, in Von Glahn v. Hoskins, the Missouri Supreme Court unanimously held that the Missouri Constitution permits a referendum on congressional redistricting maps, thereby putting on hold the so-...
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Steven Mazie @stevenmazie.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
My story this week @economist.com looks at Donald Trump’s tangled EO purporting to grab control of mail-in voting. His efforts are going nowhere fast. economist.com/united-state...
economist.com
Donald Trump’s attack on mail-in voting looks doomed
A federal judge issues another blow to the president’s elections agenda
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Stephen Wolf @stephenwolf.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
Missouri Republicans tried to make voter-initiated constitutional amendments impossible by requiring passage in every congressional district instead of just statewide. Voters rejected the amendment in not just every congressional district but every county too. Trump won all but four counties there
New York Times election results graphic for Missouri's Amendment 4. "No" is marked with a check as the winner, with 1,123,264 votes, or 80.3%. "Yes" has 275,157 votes, or 19.7%. Total reported: 1,398,421.

Below, a county map of Missouri shades results from teal for Yes to orange for No, with the darkest shades indicating margins of 70% or more. Kansas City, Columbia, St. Louis, and Springfield are labeled. Every county is shaded orange for No, and no county is teal. The great majority are at the darkest orange level of 70% or more, including all counties around Kansas City, Columbia, St. Louis, and Springfield. A cluster of lighter-orange counties in the 60-percent range appears in the northeast, with a few scattered lighter counties in the south-central and southeastern parts of the state.
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 13/07/2026
Call for Papers for the 2027 Election Law Conference at USC Gould School of Law! Feel free to reach out with any questions. electionlawblog.org?p=157307
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 13/07/2026
Call for Papers for the 2027 Election Law Conference at USC Gould School of Law! Feel free to reach out with any questions. electionlawblog.org?p=157307
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 10/06/2026
Relying on the Supreme Court's decision in Callais and its gutting of Section 2 of the VRA, the OLC released a memo declaring unconstitutional the EEOC's interpretive rules and guidance documents governing Title VII's disparate-impact provisions. Here's my take: electionlawblog.org?p=156693
electionlawblog.org
Trump Administration says Callais's Logic Applies to Title VII's Disparate Impact Provisions #ELB
The collateral damage of Louisiana v. Callais is spreading to employment discrimination. Relying on Callais, the Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) has issued a memo declaring unconstitutional the EEOC’s i...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 03/06/2026
Some thoughts on tonight's indefensible shadow docket ruling in the Alabama congressional redistricting dispute. electionlawblog.org?p=156546
electionlawblog.org
The Supreme Court Rewards Alabama's Defiance #ELB
Earlier tonight, in yet another 6-3 shadow docket order, the Supreme Court stayed a three-judge district court’s injunction, thereby allowing Alabama to use a congressional map that was found to be in...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 12/05/2026
electionlawblog.org?p=156075
electionlawblog.org
Breaking: Supreme Court Greenlights Alabama Mid-Decade Redistricting #ELB
In a 6-3 shadow docket order, and over a dissent by Justice Sotomayor, the Supreme Court effectively allowed Alabama to re-draw its congressional redistricting map. You can find the order here. Follow...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 29/04/2026
Here's an in-depth analysis of the Supreme Court's decision in Callais that effectively guts Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act: electionlawblog.org?p=155755
electionlawblog.org
The Callais Catastrophe #ELB
The Supreme Court has decided Louisiana v. Callais, and the result could very well be catastrophic for minority political power. The big-ticket takeaways are clear: the Court has gutted Section 2 of t...
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Michael Li (李之樸) @mcpli.bsky.social · 04/03/2026
With Callais not out yet & no opinion likely until late March at the earliest, it is becoming functionally too late for most southern states to redraw maps. By the end of March, primaries will have happened in TX, NC, & MS & mail ballots will go out shortly after in AL, GA, and LA.
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 04/03/2026
In a new Election Law Blog, I argue that, in prepping for a post-Trump world, we need to re-think preclearance. Using the mid-decade redistricting fights as an example, the post argues that DOJ should be sidelined and/or courts given power to review preclearance grants. electionlawblog.org?p=154611
electionlawblog.org
Rethinking Preclearance in the Age of Trump #ELB
With Monday’s shadow docket decision in Malliotakis v. Williams, the Staten Island NYVRA case, the Supreme Court has doubled-down on its resistance to lower courts issuing preliminary injunctions agai...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 24/02/2026
I've just submitted a new paper out this law review cycle. In Liquidating Reconstruction, I ask what the Reconstruction Amendments can teach us about liquidation and vice versa. This paper is especially timely given that 2027 is the 150th anniversary of the end of Reconstruction.
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Can’t Stop Twinkling 💕💚 @proftolson.bsky.social · 18/02/2026
My book is available for pre-order! Get your copy here: www.cambridge.org/us/universit...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 06/02/2026
Remember how the first Trump administration tried to "enforce the VRA" by adding a citizenship question to the 2020 Census? Well it appears we're gonna have that fight again, and this time a recent lawsuit brought by Missouri is the opening volley. electionlawblog.org?p=154179
electionlawblog.org
The Brewing Fight Over the 2030 Census’s Citizenship Question #ELB
Last week, Missouri filed a complaint alleging that undocumented immigrants and temporary visa holders (such as those here on student or work visas) should not be counted during the 2030 Census and ap...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 30/01/2026
Missouri has filed a lawsuit seeking to exclude undocumented immigrants from the 2030 Census and apportionment. Remarkably, Missouri is also seeking a "redo" of the 2020 enumeration "if necessary." No idea how that would even be possible at this stage. electionlawblog.org?p=154059
electionlawblog.org
"Missouri Attorney General Hanaway Files Suit Against U.S. Department of Commerce, Census Bureau To Cease Counting Illegal Aliens, Requests Census Recount" #ELB
You can find Missouri’s AG’s press release here. The complaint is here. This is yet another attempt to exclude undocumented immigrants from the decennial apportionment. The first Trump administration ...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 23/01/2026
I'm thrilled to announce that I’ve signed a contract with Cambridge University Press to write a book on the Fifteenth Amendment. The target publication date is late 2028. The tentative title is "The Fifteenth Amendment: An Unabridged History of the Fight against Racial Discrimination in Voting."
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 08/12/2025
SCOTUS is sitting on a cert petition in a major Section 2 case about implied causes of action. There's likely a dissent from denial of cert or its being held for Callais. This has very worrisome implications for the VRA's constitutionality. electionlawblog.org?p=153412
electionlawblog.org
Turtle Mountain Cert Petition Remains Pending: What Does this mean for Callais? #ELB
As readers of this blog know, the Eighth Circuit recently ruled that there is no implied cause of action under Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act and that Section 1983 cannot provide a jurisdictional ...
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Rick Hasen @rickhasen.bsky.social · 04/12/2025
“‘Constitutional hardball’: National gerrymander battle turns the heat up in Missouri” electionlawblog.org?p=153339
electionlawblog.org
"‘Constitutional hardball’: National gerrymander battle turns the heat up in Missouri" #ELB
Politico: Republicans and Democrats are quietly pouring millions of dollars into a fight trying to block Missouri’s new gerrymandered congressional map, as each party scrambles for any advantage they ...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 19/11/2025
The first mid-decade redistricting case is headed to the Supreme Court's shadow docket. Here's why the so-called Purcell Principle--which counsels against enjoining redistricting maps close to an election--should not apply here: electionlawblog.org?p=153101
electionlawblog.org
Mid-Decade Redistricting and the Purcell Principle #ELB
Yesterday, a three-judge district court preliminarily enjoined Texas’s mid-decade congressional redistricting map. This case will be promptly appealed to the Supreme Court, and it will be the first of...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 17/10/2025
Hot off the presses! I helped organize a symposium on the 150th anniversary of Minor v. Happersett, where the Supreme Court held that women were not enfranchised by the 14th Amendment. The case originated in St. Louis, so it was rewarding to shine a light on this overlooked piece of local history.
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 17/10/2025
Missouri is seeking to revive the independent state legislature theory by insisting there's a clear statement rule. The rejected legal theory that plagued the 2020 election makes a return in the mid-decade redistricting wars. electionlawblog.org?p=152593
electionlawblog.org
"Redistricting foes blast Hanaway for trying to stop referendum on Missouri map" #ELB
Missouri seeks to revive the independent state legislature theory, this time its by insisting that there’s a clear-statement rule. I may have more to say about this case in the near future. In the mea...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 15/10/2025
Here's my take on today's big voting rights argument in Louisiana v. Callais. The Justices re-hashed arguments that had been considered three Terms ago in Milligan, and they appeared more interested in tweaking the VRA than in overturning it. electionlawblog.org?p=152557
electionlawblog.org
Callais Re-Argument Recap #ELB
Earlier today, I attended the oral argument in Callais. My global takeaway is a bit more sanguine than Rick’s. When the case was set for re-argument, the new QP flagged Section 2’s constitutionality: ...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 14/10/2025
In advance of tomorrow's re-argument in the major voting rights case of Louisiana v. Callais, I've got two posts on the Election Law Blog. I'll be attending the argument and will provide an eyewitness account on ELB as well.
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 30/09/2025
Can't wait to read this!
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 10/09/2025
Really excited to be attending the 2025 Election Law Conference at Florida State University this weekend. We've got a great line-up of speakers! electionlawblog.org?p=151984
electionlawblog.org
The 2025 Election Law Conference at Florida State University #ELB
This weekend, FSU will host the 2025 Election Law Conference. Jacob Eisler is the organizer, and I am serving as an informal advisor. This conference is a sequel to last year’s Election Law Conference...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 04/09/2025
I filed an amicus brief in Callais, this fall's blockbuster voting rights case. I make three arguments. First, the Fifteenth Amendment is the constitutional provision that bans racial discrimination in voting. Second, Shaw should be overturned. Finally, Section 2 of the VRA is constitutional.
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 08/08/2025
Preclearance under the Voting Rights Act was designed to stop the game of whack-a-mole that was Southern States defying federal court orders. Alabama did just that in 2023. Unfortunately, Alabama dodged the hammer once again. electionlawblog.org?p=151462
electionlawblog.org
Alabama Dodges Bail-in #ELB
Yesterday, the three-judge district court in the Alabama congressional redistricting litigation declined to bail-in the State to the VRA’s preclearance regime. You can find the district court’s decisi...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 29/07/2025
Happening today!
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 28/07/2025
Tomorrow, there's a big hearing on whether to bail-in Alabama under the Voting Rights Act, meaning that it would have to get federal approval to enact any new congressional redistricting plans through the 2030 Census. Here's my thoughts on the Election Law Blog: electionlawblog.org?p=151207
electionlawblog.org
The Prospect of Bailing-in Alabama #ELB
Tomorrow, the three-judge district court in the Alabama congressional redistricting litigation will hold a hearing on whether to bail-in Alabama to the VRA’s preclearance regime. If bailed-in, Alabama...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 25/07/2025
What's taking the Supreme Court so long to issue a re-argument order in last Term's big voting rights case? electionlawblog.org?p=151175
electionlawblog.org
Waiting for Callais #ELB
Earlier today, Rick Pildes flagged the Court’s inexplicable month-long delay in issuing a re-argument order in Louisiana v. Callais, last Term’s—and now next Term’s—major Shaw case. I agree with Pilde...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 24/07/2025
New paper! Along with my co-authors, Prof. Susan Appleton and Hannah Keidan, I have posted a short symposium foreword, "The Curiously Minor Role of Minor v. Happersett," on SSRN. Anyone interested in legal history, election law, or women's rights should check it out: papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
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Rick Hasen @rickhasen.bsky.social · 08/05/2025
Breaking: Three-Judge District Court Finds Alabama’s Congressional Redistricting Plan Intentionally Discriminated Against Black Voters **Updated** electionlawblog.org?p=149829 by the great @traviscrum.bsky.social
electionlawblog.org
Breaking: Three-Judge District Court Finds Alabama's Congressional Redistricting Plan Intentionally Discriminated Against Black Voters **Updated** #ELB
The court’s 571-page opinion is here. This decision is on remand from the Supreme Court’s 5-4 ruling in Allen v. Milligan. This is the latest decision in the long-running Section 2 litigation against ...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 08/05/2025
District Court rules that Alabama intentionally discriminated against Black voters when it defied SCOTUS's decision in Allen v. Milligan. The upshot is that Alabama may be required to preclear congressional redistricting plans through 2030 cycle. My analysis at ELB: electionlawblog.org?p=149829
electionlawblog.org
Breaking: Three-Judge District Court Finds Alabama's Congressional Redistricting Plan Intentionally Discriminated Against Black Voters **Updated** #ELB
The court’s 571-page opinion is here. This decision is on remand from the Supreme Court’s 5-4 ruling in Allen v. Milligan. This is the latest decision in the long-running Section 2 litigation against ...
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Rick Hasen @rickhasen.bsky.social · 24/04/2025
A few thoughts on Judge Kollar-Kotelly's 120 page opinion preliminarily enjoining some key parts of President Trump's executive order on elections and election administration. Over at ELB, @traviscrum.bsky.social will be blogging on it here: electionlawblog.org?p=149610) /1
electionlawblog.org
Breaking: DDC enjoins Trump Elections Executive Order #ELB
The opinion is here. The order is here. The preliminary injunction covers two parts of the Executive Order: Section 2(a) (which mandated that the Election Assistance Commission revise the Federal Form...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 24/04/2025
My thoughts on the DDC's injunction against the Trump Elections Executive Order are over at the Election Law Blog: electionlawblog.org?p=149610
electionlawblog.org
Breaking: DDC enjoins Part of Trump Elections Executive Order **Updated** #ELB
The 120-page opinion is here. The order is here. The preliminary injunction in LULAC v. Executive Office of the President was issued by Judge Kollar-Kotelly of the U.S. District Court for the District...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 31/03/2025
For my first contributor post at the Election Law Blog, I wrote about why Trump's Voting Executive Order should encourage us to amend Section 2 of the VRA to apply to the federal government. electionlawblog.org?p=149242
electionlawblog.org
Trump's Voting Executive Order and Section 2 of the VRA #ELB
Hi everyone. Travis Crum here. Long-time guest blogger. Newly minted contributor. Looking forward to participating in the conversation more. Thanks to Rick for having me. Last week, President Trump is...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 31/03/2025
So excited to be joining the Election Law Blog as a contributor!!! Thanks @rickhasen.bsky.social! electionlawblog.org?p=149229
electionlawblog.org
Travis Crum Joining as ELB Contributor #ELB
I’m very pleased to announced that Travis Crum of Wash. U. is joining ELB as a contributor. Travis has written frequent guest posts already for ELB, so he should be familiar to many of you. He’s recen...
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Steven Mazie @stevenmazie.bsky.social · 25/03/2025
A lot rides on how SCOTUS resolves the big voting rights case argued yesterday. My @economist.com analysis of Louisiana v. Callais economist.com/united-state... from The Economist
economist.com
America’s Supreme Court tackles a thorny voting-rights case
Louisiana v Callais could affect control of the House of Representatives in next year’s midterms
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 24/03/2025
Over at the Election Law Blog, I have a recap of today's oral argument in Louisiana v. Callais: electionlawblog.org?p=149135
electionlawblog.org
Travis Crum: Callais Oral Argument Recap #ELB
The following is a post from Travis Crum: Here’s a recap of today’s oral argument in Louisiana v. Callais. At the outset, a short summary of what Callais is about. Callais is an old-school, 1990s-styl...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 24/03/2025
Over the weekend, @rickpildes.bsky.social posted a thoughtful response to my Election Law Blog post about Louisiana v. Callais. Here's my rebuttal about why overturning Shaw is still a good idea and why Section 2 litigation can still be used to unpack districts. electionlawblog.org?p=149124
electionlawblog.org
Travis Crum: The Consequences of Overturning Shaw and the Continuing Relevance of Section 2 #ELB
The following is a guest post from Travis Crum: Over the weekend, Rick Pildes published a response to my post—which built on a recent essay—calling on the Supreme Court to overturn Shaw’s racial gerry...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 21/03/2025
On Monday, the Supreme Court will hear oral argument in Louisiana v. Callais, a racial gerrymandering challenge to Louisiana's congressional map. Over at the Election Law Blog, I have a preview of the case: electionlawblog.org?p=149079
electionlawblog.org
Crum: "Questioning Shaw in Callais" #ELB
The following is a guest post from Professor Travis Crum: On Monday, the Supreme Court will hear oral argument in Louisiana v. Callais, a Shaw challenge to Louisiana’s congressional redistricting plan...
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Travis Crum @traviscrum.bsky.social · 21/03/2025
On Monday, the Supreme Court will hear oral argument in Louisiana v. Callais, a racial gerrymandering challenge to Louisiana's congressional map. Over at the Election Law Blog, I have a preview of the case: electionlawblog.org?p=149079
electionlawblog.org
Crum: "Questioning Shaw in Callais" #ELB
The following is a guest post from Professor Travis Crum: On Monday, the Supreme Court will hear oral argument in Louisiana v. Callais, a Shaw challenge to Louisiana’s congressional redistricting plan...
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