Gov. Reeves calls special Mississippi legislative session for judicial redistricting, dependent on U.S. Supreme Court decision

By Taylor Vance | Originally published by Mississippi Today

Gov. Tate Reeves on Friday announced that he will call lawmakers into a special legislative session to redraw Mississippi’s state Supreme Court districts, but it’s unclear when legislators will return to Jackson. 

Reeves said Mississippi legislators will return to the state Capitol 21 days after the U.S. Supreme Court issues a decision in the Louisiana v. Callais case, a decision widely expected to roll back portions of the federal Voting Rights Act. 

But the nation’s highest court has not yet issued the decision, and it’s unclear when it will.

The U.S. Supreme Court’s pending decision is happening at the same time that a federal judge in Mississippi is dealing with a redistricting case. 

U.S. District Judge Sharion Aycock ruled last year that one of the districts in the Mississippi Supreme Court violates the federal Voting Rights Act because it does not allow Black voters in one area a fair chance to elect a candidate of their choice.  

Aycock is convening a court hearing on Tuesday in Aberdeen to discuss redrawing the districts.

This article was originally published by Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

Source: Original Article