Two lawsuits challenge Tennessee's new U.S. House map
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Two lawsuits challenging Tennessee's new congressional map were filed hours after it was signed into law.
Why it matters: The new map, which Republicans created to give themselves a clean sweep of the state's nine U.S. House seats, must survive the immediate legal challenges to take effect for the midterm election.
Driving the news: The NAACP spearheaded a Davidson County Chancery Court lawsuit that claims Gov. Bill Lee did not properly state his purpose for calling the new special session. Lee asked lawmakers to review the map and didn't say the specific purpose was to break up the Memphis-area House district.
A second suit, filed in federal court late night Thursday by voters and Democratic candidates, claims the new map creates bureaucratic confusion and is impossible to implement in time for the August primary.
Zoom in: The second suit makes a more technical argument, asserting that there isn't adequate time for administrative tasks like reprograming voting machines, alerting voters to changes and mailing ballots to military members overseas.
- Early voting is set to begin in July.
The suit argues the tight timeline amplifies the risk of technical errors, such as voters getting ballots for the wrong district.
Between the lines: The plaintiffs say putting the new map into effect this year creates even more chaos because the candidates' qualifying deadline had passed and ballot lineups had already been set.
The intrigue: The lawsuit uses Lee's and state election officials' own arguments against them.
- It refers back to a 2022 lawsuit against Tennessee maps for state legislative districts. In that case, the state argued there wasn't enough time to make changes because the midterm election process was already underway.
- The state Supreme Court agreed, relying on affidavits from election administrators.
The Supreme Court issued its ruling on April 13. Now Republican state leaders must argue against their 2022 statements, even though the legislature approved the U.S. House maps even later in the process, on May 7.
What they're saying: "Based on the sworn statements of the very election officers who will administer the August 6, 2026, primary statewide and in Shelby County ... the Act will unlawfully burden the plaintiffs' constitutional rights to vote and to free speech and association," the lawsuit argues.
- U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen, state Rep. Justin Pearson and Columbia Mayor Chaz Molder are plaintiffs in the case, as are individual voters.
The bottom line: Both suits ask the court to block the map from taking effect prior to this year's elections.