Michael Li (李之樸)

This in a district that the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) won with 51.8% of the vote in the 2022 general election.

Also waiting to see whether the court in Louisiana *legislative* redistricting cases grants the state’s request to postpone the remedial map hearings currently scheduled to start on August 25 in light of Callais.

The court heard argument on the state’s request last Wednesday.

The order suspending proceedings in the Texas redistricting cases was sua sponte (that is, on the court’s own initiative and not on the request of any party). #txlege

Trial in the Texas redistricting cases finished in June, and the parties were in the process of post-trial briefing. Now all that is indefinitely delayed/suspended as the court waits for what SCOTUS may (or may not) do with the Voting Rights Act. #txlege

NEW: The three-judge panel in the Texas redistricting cases (over current maps) has suspended deadlines in the cases citing not just the possibility of a new congressional map but also Callais and Turtle Mountain. #txlege

New Gilded Age spires (from Columbus Circle)

The letter notes that many of the changes to Black and Latino districts in the map seem to be driven by race and thus may be racial gerrymanders as well as intentionally discriminatory under federal precedents. #txlege

The letter, in particular, raises concerns about the increase in the Black population of TX-18 and TX-30 to above 50%, which has the effect of reducing the overall number of Black electoral opportunities. #txlege

The NAACP Legal Defense Fund & Education Fund & Black organizations have submitted updated testimony to the Texas Senate redistricting committee addressing the proposed congressional map (Plan C2308). #txlege

www.naacpldf.org/wp-content/u...

I've had calls with several reporters the past week to the effect of "I can't believe I'm back to writing about redistricting at this point in the decade."

You and me. You and me.

Want to know what’s going right in Britain? Come to the capital, look at the Elizabeth line railway | Jonn Elledge It’s a ‘can-do’ object lesson for the Treasury. And imagine what such ambition could do for the fortunes of Birmingham, Manchester or Leeds, says author Jonn Elledge

A great read on the success of London’s Elizabeth line.

“The Saturday service on the core section of the Elizabeth line will increase from 16 to 20 trains an hour. From December, there will be a train every three minutes between Paddington and Whitechapel.”

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Spotted in Brooklyn

Also 60 years ago today:

DOJ files lawsuits to seek abolition of poll taxes in Texas, Alabama, and Virginia. (Three days before, DOJ had also filed a lawsuit challenging the poll tax in Mississippi.)

60 years ago today:

Four days after enactment of the Voting Rights Act, federal voter registrars arrive in nine southern counties where Black voters have faced significant difficulties getting on the rolls.

Picture below: Black voters registering in Canton, Mississippi, 8/10/1965.

Data viz online is great. But sometimes the print version just brings it all together.

Re-reading Love in the Time of Cholera on the deck is the perfect way to spend a Saturday after a crazy couple of weeks.

Where Kids Put Down Their Phones and Pick Up the Correct Fork In cotillions in Austin, tweens are building confidence on the dance floor and at the dining table through evolving traditions.

Loved this piece from last Sunday’s NYT on the charming and evolving traditions of cotillions in Texas.

www.nytimes.com/card/2025/06...

Another lawsuit has been filed by Texas AG Ken Paxton seeking return of quorum breaking House Democrats, this one in California. #txlege

www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/defaul...

I have no idea how long this Texas quorum break is going to last or how it is going to play out, but we soon could be in the territory of Bowen Yang playing Gene Wu. #txlege

a man speaking into a microphone with the words " senator i 'm singaporean " written below him ALT: a man speaking into a microphone with the words " senator i 'm singaporean " written below him

A happy 60th anniversary of independence to Singapore! 🇸🇬

Here's predicted Trump approval within state, modeled using our latest polls. Overall approve (left) and tariffs (right). Red is approve, blue is disapprove. Note how underwater POTUS is on trade — including in rural areas of both "red" and "blue" states www.gelliottmorris.com/p/trump-is-u...

It’s not impossibly behind schedule, but historically the first argument calendars have come out in July.

It’s now almost the middle of August, and SCOTUS still hasn’t released argument calendars for either the October or November sittings

NEW: Texas AG Ken Paxton has filed an original action at the Texas Supreme Court asking the court to remove 13 House Democrats from office claiming that they have vacated their offices by leaving the state.

Petition here:

www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/defaul...

#txlege

Republicans' new proposed Texas congressional map will be on the floor of the Senate on Monday, August 11. #txlege

In addition, the court retained jurisdiction to adjudicate any violates of the injunction.

However, the three-judge panel issued an injunction directing Alabama to continue using the special master-drawn, court-adopted congressional map until it adopts a new map after the 2030 census.

Yesterday, the three-judge panel in the Alabama congressional redistricting case declined to put Alabama back under preclearance using the bail-in provisions of Section 3 of the Voting Rights Act.

drive.google.com/file/d/1uAMB...

Former Georgia lieutenant governor joins Democratic Party Former Georgia Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan has joined the Democratic Party after falling out with the GOP, saying the switch has been coming for a while.  Duncan, in an op-ed published by the Atlanta Jou…

Former Georgia lieutenant governor Geoff Duncan announces that he has switched parties to become a Democrat.

thehill.com/homenews/sta...

If you're a 1L starting law school in coming weeks, just remember: You're *supposed to* feel a bit confused at first. It's normal. Law is like a language. You learn it best through immersion. You'll take a few weeks to get to speed.

This may help, too:
papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....