The new Illinois legislative redistricting plan cleared another legal test Wednesday when a three-judge federal panel ruled that the revised map does protect minority voting rights.
The decision ends any chance the courtroom battle over the Republican-crafted map could disrupt Tuesday`s primary.
The panel`s opinion, written by U.S. District Judge Charles R. Norgle Sr., said, ”The plan provides a meaningful opportunity for minority voters to elect candidates of their choice in areas where this opportunity is warranted by their population numbers, and does not intentionally discriminate along racial lines.”
In January, the plan was adopted by the Republican majority on the Illinois Legislative Redistricting Commission and approved by a deeply divided state Supreme Court.
Opponents contended that eight House districts and three Senate districts, all on the South Side, were drawn in such a way as to deny blacks a chance to elect legislators, although the African-American populations of those districts exceed the 65 percent generally thought necessary to assure minority representation.
At a five-day hearing by the three-judge panel, critics contended white-ethnic Democratic organizations in those districts were sufficiently strong to block black candidates from winning.
William J. Harte, the attorney for the Democrats, said he expects to appeal the Wednesday`s ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court.