Making Democracy Work for 100+ Years

LWVNM Statement on Republican Party of New Mexico v. Oliver

The August 15 article, "New Mexico congressional redistricting lawsuit moves forward", in The Paper implied that the League of Women Voters of New Mexico signed onto an amicus brief in support of the plaintiffs in Republican Party of New Mexico v. Oliver.

The League of Women Voters of New Mexico is a nonpartisan political organization, never supporting or opposing any political party. The League signed on to an amicus brief, a written argument submitted to the court, relating to the case of Republican Party of New Mexico v. Oliver. In addition, the signers include the Election Reformers Network, Common Cause NM and others.

The signers of the amicus brief do not have a position on the merits of the lawsuit. The amicus brief was filed to provide metrics and standards to determine if "egregious gerrymandering" took place. To decide whether the level of partisan gerrymandering is acceptable, the New Mexico Supreme Court directed the Fifth District Court to use a three-pronged test outlined by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan in her dissenting opinion in the 2019 Rucho v. Common Cause.

The importance of this cannot be overstated. If Justice Kagan’s criteria are put into place, they could be used across the nation in any state where there is egregious partisan gerrymandering.

Read the full amicus brief here: Amicus Brief on Republican Party of NM v. Oliver.

LWVUS statement on Supreme Court Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Decision

June 24, 2022 LWVUS statement: Supreme Court Strips Americans of Constitutional Right to Abortion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization Decision

“Today’s ruling strips women and those who may become pregnant of their bodily autonomy and will have devastating — and immediate — consequences across the country. While the Court’s opinion was expected, its harm is extreme and real. When women and those who can become pregnant can no longer make reproductive decisions for their own bodies, they are no longer equal individuals in our democracy. This harm will exacerbate societal inequalities and fall disproportionately on people of color and low-income communities already facing egregious obstacles to health care.%rdquo;

Read the full statement.

For older news items, see the LWVNM News Archive.