Kagan says opponents of partisan gerrymandering should 'go for it'
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan.
Justice Elena Kagan isn’t giving up hope that the U.S. Supreme Court will eventually overturn its June decision that held partisan gerrymandering is a political issue that can’t be decided by the courts.
Kagan dissented in the cases, warning that partisan gerrymanders allow politicians to entrench themselves in office and could “irreparably damage our system of government.” In remarks Thursday, Kagan said she didn’t pull any punches in her dissent because of the decision’s impact on the political system, report the Huffington Post, the Washington Times and the Hill.
“There’s no part of me that’s ever going to become accepting of the decision made,” Kagan said at an appearance at Georgetown University Law Center. The C-SPAN video and transcript is here.
Kagan said she was “100% certain that the majority was acting in complete good faith,” but she hopes her dissent will prove persuasive in the future.
“For all those people out there who in some way can carry on the efforts against this kind of undermining of democracy, go for it because you’re right, and for the future, maybe the court will change its mind on this one,” she said.
Though Kagan hopes the court will eventually change its mind, she nonetheless spoke about the importance of precedent. When the Supreme Court overturns precedent, it should be for “reasons beyond just ordinary wrongness,” she said.
