The Legislature Holds the Pen
In South Carolina, the power to draw congressional and state legislative districts lies firmly with the state legislature. Unlike some states that use independent or bipartisan commissions to reduce political influence, South Carolina’s process is handled by the very politicians who stand to benefit from the outcome. The General Assembly—the State House and Senate—takes the lead. Typically, legislative committees are formed to manage the process, holding public hearings and using sophisticated software to draft the new maps based on U.S. Census data. Because the legislature controls the process, the political party in power has a significant advantage in creating districts that favor their candidates, a practice known as gerrymandering.
The Rules of the Road
Map-drawers
are not without constraints. Federal law sets two primary rules. First, districts must have nearly equal populations to uphold the 'one person, one vote' principle established by the U.S. Constitution. Second, the maps must comply with the Voting Rights Act, which prohibits racial discrimination and ensures minority groups have an opportunity to elect representatives of their choice. Beyond these federal mandates, states often adopt their own criteria. Common principles include making districts compact and contiguous (all parts of the district must connect) and trying to keep existing political subdivisions, like counties and cities, intact. However, these traditional principles are often balanced against—or sacrificed for—political goals.
From Draft to Law
Once a proposed map is finalized by the legislative committees, it must go through the same process as any other piece of legislation. It is introduced as a bill, debated, and must be passed by both the House and the Senate. After the General Assembly approves the map, it goes to the governor’s desk for a signature. The governor has the power to veto the map, just like any other bill. If a veto occurs, the legislature can override it with a two-thirds majority vote in both chambers. In 2022, the post-2020 congressional map was passed by the legislature and signed by the governor on the same day, putting the new districts into law.
The Inevitable Court Challenge
The drawing of a map is rarely the final word. Because the stakes are so high, redistricting plans in South Carolina frequently end up in court. Following the 2020 census, a major lawsuit, Alexander v. South Carolina State Conference of the NAACP, challenged the new congressional map, alleging that the 1st Congressional District was an unconstitutional racial gerrymander. Plaintiffs argued that lawmakers intentionally moved tens of thousands of Black voters out of the district to solidify a Republican advantage, using race as the primary factor. A lower federal court agreed, ruling the district was illegally drawn and must be redone. However, in a landmark 6-3 decision in May 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court reversed the lower court's ruling. The majority opinion argued that plaintiffs had failed to prove that race, rather than partisan politics, was the predominant factor in drawing the lines, establishing a high bar for future racial gerrymandering claims. The Court sent the case back to the lower court, and the map remained in place for the 2024 elections.
