Amicus brief for redistricting case gets new supporter

U.S. Rep. Reid Ribble (R-WI) has teamed up with 19 of his House colleagues in submitting a bipartisan congressional amicus brief with the U.S. Supreme Court concerning a redistricting case about to come before the court, Ribble said Thursday.

The brief supports the idea that U.S. citizens have the right to choose how the federal election and redistricting processes will be conducted in their particular states.

“People coming together and solving problems on common ground is the essence of good government, and that is what we have seen with the citizens of Arizona in this case,” Ribble said. “Gerrymandering that makes districts increasingly extreme on either side of the political spectrum ultimately hurts all Americans. When a district is so heavily liberal or conservative that the only competition for a seat occurs during the primary election, it can disenfranchise millions of voters.”

The brief is centered on a current Supreme Court case originating in Arizona. That case, Arizona State Legislature v. Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission, is scheduled to begin oral arguments in March. The document makes several strong arguments in support of the constitutional rights of the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission.

“I commend the people of Arizona for working toward a solution for this problem and hope that the Supreme Court will uphold their constitutional right to do so,” Ribble said.

The amicus brief also was signed by U.S. Reps. Julia Brownley (D-CA), Ken Calvert (R-CA), Steve Cohen (D-TN), Jim Cooper (D-TN), Rodney Davis (R-IL), Keith Ellison (D-MN), Alan Grayson (D-FL), Raul Grijalva (D-AZ), Richard Hanna (R-NY), Duncan Hunter (R-CA), Derek Kilmer (D-WA), Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Alan Lowenthal (D-CA), Tom McClintock (R-CA), Mark Meadows (R-NC), Beto O’Rourke (D-TX), David Price (D-NC), Tom Reed (R-NY), and Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA).