The U.S. Supreme Court will soon decide Moore v. Harper, a major case with potential to erase 200 years of legal precedent and upend the American system of democracy.

A worst-case ruling in this case would hand partisan state lawmakers the power to manipulate our elections and undermine our votes –state courts and governors could not stop them.

Background

Moore v. Harper came from a victory Common Cause, voting rights partners, and our legal team at Southern Coalition for Social Justice and Hogan Lovells won in North Carolina. We sued Tim Moore, the N.C. House Speaker, over voting maps rigged to benefit Republicans.

North Carolina lawmakers then appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court to try and claim state legislatures should have absolute power to craft voting maps and run federal elections, with no checks and balances from state courts.

They based their case on the ‘independent state legislature theory’ (ISLT), an extreme and dangerous idea pushed by a fringe group of politicians who want to overrule the voters and seize power over our government at any cost.

We call it the “Lawless Lawmakers Theory” – and it’s been decisively rejected by experts from across the political spectrum because it would open Pandora’s Box to unlimited gerrymandering, voter suppression, and election sabotage.

Now, we’re defending fair maps and fair elections from this desperate power grab before the Supreme Court. A decision is expected from the Supreme Court in June — you can read filings from Moore v. Harper and learn more here. 

Mitchell Brown, senior voting rights counsel at Southern Coalition of Social Justice speaks in from of the U.S. Supreme Court. Photo via Getty Images.

 

What’s at Stake

If the Lawless Lawmakers Theory succeeds, it would allow state legislators to eliminate checks and balances, manipulate our elections, and undermine your vote. Your state courts, governor, or others wouldn’t be able to stop them.

A bad decision would pave the way for: 

  • Widespread purges of voters from voting rolls
  • Dramatic cuts to popular early voting and vote-by-mail options
  • Discriminatory barriers to voting access
  • Baseless challenges to fair election results
  • Fewer protections against voter intimidation.
  • Rigged voting maps that dilute people’s voting power
  • Elimination of independent redistricting commissions across the country

What’s at stake in this case will affect all of us: whether our elections should be about the will of the voters, or about how the political party in power manipulates election outcomes, not just in North Carolina, but in every state across the country.

If the Supreme Court buys this radical attempt to declare open season on our voting rights, the results will be catastrophic. We need to be prepared for any outcome in this case – including being ready to rapidly scale up our work to protect our democracy and your right to vote.

That could mean organizing demonstrations against attempts to manipulate our elections, filing lawsuits against undemocratic policies, and relentless lobbying to protect voters on the state and national level, and so much more. It will be an enormous undertaking to save our democracy, but Common Cause is prepared for any outcome.

CCNC Board Member Becky Harper, who lent her name to this case.

Get Involved

We’re counting on Common Cause supporters like you to help make sure this attempt to take away our checks and balances, our rights, and our democracy cannot succeed. Here’s how you can help:

Share On Twitter Share on Facebook Make a Donation Write Your Senators Host an Event Write a Letter to Editor

Our attorney, Neal Katyal, with Common Cause's VP for Programs Kathay Feng (Image via Getty Images)

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