A federal lawsuit alleges that all five districts drawn to elect officials in Mississippi’s DeSoto County discriminate against Black Mississippians. The Legal Defense Fund (LDF), the ACLU of Mississippi, and Harvard Election Law are all plaintiffs in the lawsuit filed on behalf of two county voters and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc. The lawsuit was filed in the Northern District of Mississippi on Sept. 12.
According to Mississippi Today, although 32% of residents in DeSoto County are Black, none of that county’s 25 elected officials are Black. These positions include county supervisors, justice court judges, constables, school board members, and election commissioners.
According to the Legal Defense Fund’s press release, leaders in the LDF believe that the districts as they are drawn are racially discriminatory.
As Amir Badat, the Voting Special Counsel for the LDF, said in
the press release, “Black voters in DeSoto County deserve to fully and fairly participate in the democratic process to ensure their interests are represented and their communities are accounted for,” Badat said.Badat continued, “DeSoto County’s racially discriminatory redistricting plan denies Black DeSoto residents their fundamental right to elect representatives invested in their unique needs. This dangerously impacts the quality of life for Black DeSoto residents…We will work to protect the rights of Black DeSoto residents to fairly participate in this democracy and elect the governing bodies who best represent their community’s interests.”
Daniel Hessel, an attorney and clinical instructor at Harvard Election Law Clinic, agreed with Badat’s assessment, saying in the press release that “DeSoto County’s districting map splinters the County’s Black community, denying Black
voters an opportunity to have [a] voice in their government. Black voters in DeSoto County have a right to fair maps to ensure their needs and interests are reflected in the five offices elected under these district lines.”According to Jarvis Dortch, executive director of the Mississippi branch of the ACLU, the fastest-growing county in Mississippi deserves fair representation. “DeSoto County is the fastest-growing county in Mississippi. The individuals and families that move to our State deserve fair and just representation in their local government,” Dortch said.
Dortch continued, “Unfortunately, the current Supervisor district lines are drawn to favor white voters and harm voters of color. A community will only thrive when all voices can be heard, and some votes don’t count more than others.”
The lawsuit’s opening introduction immediately makes mention of the fact that despite the significant Black population in DeSoto County, no Black person had been elected in over two decades. It also says that the county’s previous plans splintered the Black community, diluting the political power of the Black citizens of DeSoto County.
“Despite DeSoto County’s significant Black population, no Black person has been elected to a County Office in at least the last two decades, and candidates of choice of the Black community have rarely been elected.”
The lawsuit suggests that it is possible and preferable to redraw the maps so that Black and white citizens of the county can share power.
“It is possible to draw a redistricting map that conforms to traditional redistricting principles and that includes a reasonably configured district in which Black residents are a majority of the population. Such a map would afford Black voters an opportunity to elect their preferred candidate as one of the five officeholders in each of the five County Offices currently governed by the 2022 Plan.”
According to Charles Taylor, executive director of the Mississippi State Conference of the NAACP, “Addressing DeSoto County’s history of injustices begins with fair electoral mapping and access to the ballot box,” Taylor said.
He concluded, “Participation and representation are the fundamental rights afforded by a democracy, yet the Black citizens of the county have long been denied their rights by those holding office.”
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