News Clips

“With his signature today, Governor Abbott continues the shameful five-decade-long tradition of ramming through extremely gerrymandered maps in an undemocratic process,” Anthony Gutierrez, Common Cause Texas executive director, said in a news release. “These racially and partisan gerrymandered maps deny every voter in Texas from having an equal say in the issues we care about most, like a stronger economy, better schools, and affordable healthcare.”

“In what world does it make sense to appoint someone who took an active role to discredit the will of voters?” said Stephanie Gomez, associate director of Common Cause Texas.

The reason Neil Gorsuch is sitting on the Supreme Court right now is because Senate Republicans carved out Supreme Court nominations from the filibuster rule, says Stephen Spaulding, senior counsel for public policy and government affairs at Common Cause, an advocacy organization focused on promoting democracy. Democrats did the same for President Barack Obama’s nominees were appointed to the D.C. circuit, he says. “It’s not unprecedented at all. It’s now a choice to keep the filibuster in place rather than pass legislation that would project the freedom to vote,” Spaulding says.

The appointment brought immediate criticism from Democrats and voting groups. “The timing of this announcement is clearly intended to subvert our democratic process in a way that allows Greg Abbott’s completely unsuitable nominee to oversee our 2022 elections without having to face confirmation hearings,” said Stephanie Gómez, the Texas associate director for Common Cause.

The 2020 Census demonstrated what most have long known – we are a nation that is growing increasingly diverse. But for too long, Black, Indigenous, Latinx, Asian American/Pacific Islander, and other communities of color driving our growth have been sidelined in our democracy. While it’s more common to hear about voter suppression laws and gerrymandered district maps, one lesser-known evil is prison gerrymandering. Thankfully, there is still time in this redistricting cycle to change this harmful practice in the current redistricting cycle.

Stephen Spaulding, senior counsel for public policy at the non-partisan government watchdog organization Common Cause, said lawmakers in such competitive districts face heightened scrutiny from party members and donors to hold on to their seat. "When the balance of power hangs on a handful of seats, you will see resources shifted and prioritized for those particular members in swing districts," Spaulding said. "A candidate can face a number of pressures, but ultimately, it is up to the candidate to run the campaign pursuant to their vision and their values."