Maximization, whatever the cost : race, redistricting, and the Department of Justice / Maurice T. Cunningham.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Cunningham, Maurice T.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

United States. Congress. House--Election districts.

United States.

United States. Department of Justice. Civil Rights Division--Decision making.

Election districts--United States.

Election districts.

Apportionment (Election law)--United States.

Apportionment (Election law).

African Americans--Segregation.

African Americans.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (191 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Distribution:

London : Bloomsbury Publishing, 2024

Place of Publication:

Westport, Conn. : Praeger, 2001.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

During the early 1990s the Department of Justice used its Voting Rights Act power to object to racially unfair redistricting laws to force states to maximize minority congressional districts. The results were dramatic: Congressional Black Caucus membership swelled from 25 to 38 and nine new Hispanic congresspersons were sworn in. Only three years later, the maximization strategy lay in ruins. The courts forced many of the new minority districts to be redrawn and the judiciary reserved especially harsh criticism for the Department. Cunningham examines and analyzes how the Department came to adopt the maximization strategy. He explores the bureaucratic culture of the Division's Voting Section, its history, and the interaction of its progressive career staff with more conservative political appointees. The Division works amidst a vibrant interest group environment, with civil rights advocates, the state, and political parties eager for influence. Cunningham shows how that influence contest was won by the civil rights groups, how their preferred interpretations of fair redistricting and discriminatory purpose were adopted by the Division, and how their chosen districting models were forced upon states by the Division. He examines the effect the Department has had on federalism, representation, and its own impaired credibility with the judiciary. Finally, he suggests how the Division might resurrect its damaged reputation for balanced enforcement. An important study for scholars, students, and public policy makers involved with civil rights, public administration, and public law.

Contents:

Cover

Maximization, Whatever the Cost

Contents

Preface

1 The Mystery of Racial Redistricting in the Nineties

NOTES

2 Transformation

ENFORCEMENT OF THE VOTING RIGHTS ACT OF 1965

The Johnson Administration and the Early Years

The Nixon Administration and the Seventies

The Reagan Administration-Conflict Masks a Transformation

THE TECHNOLOGICAL REVOLUTION

CONCLUSION

3 Bureaucratic Culture of the Voting Section

FORGING A PATH

PERSONNEL IN THE CIVIL RIGHTS DIVISION

Political Appointees

The Professionals

REGULATORY FRAMEWORK

HUNKERING DOWN IN THE CIVIL RIGHTS DIVISION

4 The Department's New Interpretation of the Voting Rights Act

TRADITIONAL AND MODERN APPROACHES IN THE SUPREME COURT

NUDGING THE COURT DOWN A PROGRESSIVE PATH

THE SECTION TWO RESULTS TEST, GINGLES, AND INCORPORATION

A NEW INTERPRETATION OF DISCRIMINATORY PURPOSE

PURPOSE AS POLICY-OBJECTION LETTERS

CARRYING THE FIGHT TO THE COURTS

5 External Influences on the Department's Decision Making

ORGANIZED INTERESTS IN THE VOTING RIGHTS ARENA

CIVIL RIGHTS INTEREST GROUPS

THE REPUBLICAN PARTY AS VOTING RIGHTS ADVOCATE

THE STATES

6 From Compromised Compliance to Conquered Provinces

NORTH CAROLINA

GEORGIA

LOUISIANA

7 Processes and Products of Voting Rights Act Enforcement

PROCESSES OF THE DEPARTMENT'S ENFORCEMENT

PRODUCTS OF THE DEPARTMENT'S ENFORCEMENT

Federalism

Effect on Representation

Damage to the Department

TOWARD A RESTORATION

Afterword

Selected Bibliography

CASE LAW

REFERENCES

Index

About the Author.

Notes:

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

Includes bibliographical references (p. [165]-171) and index.

ISBN:

9798400683800

9780313000652

0313000654

OCLC:

613393488