Top court won’t block Pa. ruling on redistricting

Decision may help Dems wrest control of the House in the fall

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Monday denied a request by Pennsylvania Republicans to delay redrawing congressional lines, meaning 2018 elections in the state will likely be held in districts far more favorable to Democrats.

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court last month ruled that the state’s Republican legislative leaders had violated the state Constitution by unfairly favoring the GOP. Although there are more registered Democrats than Republicans in the state, Republicans hold 13 of 18 congressional seats.

The GOP leaders asked the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene, but Justice Samuel Alito turned down their request. He gave no reason for the decision, but generally the Supreme Court stays out of the way when a state’s highest court is interpreting its own state Constitution.

The impact might aid Democrats in their attempt to flip the House from Republican control. Democrats need to take about 24 seats to win the majority and Pennsylvania could help. Six incumbents, five of them Republicans, will not be on the fall ballot.

The victory might also indicate a new way to combat the issue: by challenging redistricting in state courts under state Constitutions.

Federal courts in Texas, North Carolina and Wisconsin found that politics or intentional discrimination played a role in drawing electoral lines and ordered new districts drawn for the 2018 elections. But the Supreme Court stopped those decisions, and Monday’s denial to Pennsylvania does not affect them.