Demographics
December 10, 2021 -
In its first lawsuit to come out of the latest round of redistricting, the U.S. Department of Justice has taken aim at Texas, arguing that the GOP legislature's new election district maps violate the Voting Rights Act by discriminating against voters by race or color. We look at some of the numbers cited in the lawsuit, which faces an uphill fight in the new legal landscape created by the Supreme Court's 2013 decision gutting the landmark civil rights-era law.
November 19, 2021 -
A new report finds that while they have made dramatic progress in recent decades, Black women are still underrepresented in politics, with the disparities especially stark in Southern states. Next year's elections offer another chance for them to build power.
November 18, 2021 -
Voting rights groups have challenged election districts for the Louisiana Supreme Court, which counts just one Black justice among its seven members. Legislators want to add new districts to settle the suit, but their most recent attempt broke down over the issue of how many should have majority-Black populations.
November 16, 2021 -
The 2020 census undercounted the overall U.S. population by just 0.5%, but much bigger undercounts in Southern states will cost them millions of dollars in federal health care funding for low-income communities, according to a new report from the Urban Institute.
October 29, 2021 -
The Republicans who control legislatures in Arkansas, North Carolina, and Texas have drawn congressional maps that favor their party and disadvantage voters of color. Meanwhile, an independent redistricting commission has faltered in its effort to draw new election maps in Virginia.
October 12, 2021 -
The recent census results showed that the South is becoming more diverse, but state legislators are now drawing election districts that could keep communities of color from influencing congressional and legislative races.
September 24, 2021 -
It's been 10 years since Georgia executed Troy Davis despite questions about his guilt and calls for mercy from world leaders. One Southern state has outlawed capital punishment since then, but most states in the region still have death sentences on the books.
