Georgia’s struggles to push maps through courts runs down to school district in Cobb County

A federal court ordered the Cobb County, Georgia, school district must redraw the lines for its school board for next year’s elections.

Judge Eleanor Ross of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia ruled in favor of plaintiffs who argued that the map had been a racial gerrymander, saying it “packs” Latino and black voters into three districts while making the other four white majorities.

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“The Court has found that the Enacted Map is substantially likely to be an unconstitutional racial gerrymander,” Ross wrote.

The court decision gave lawmakers in the Georgia legislature until Jan. 10, 2024, to pass a new map for the school board election in 2024, where four seats will be up. The board currently has a 4-3 Republican majority.

The timeline from the court gives lawmakers little time to get a new map passed as the Georgia legislature gavels into its regular session on Jan. 8, 2024. The school board has requested the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals to set the order aside and is asking for quick action by the appeals court.

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The court decision is the latest instance of maps passed by the Georgia legislature being struck down due to alleged racial gerrymandering. Earlier this year, a federal court found the state legislative and congressional maps to be in violation of the Voting Rights Act and demanded more black-majority districts be created.

The Peach State legislature passed new maps which it says are compliant with the court order earlier this month. The slate of maps will do little to change the current GOP majorities in the state legislature or congressional delegation.