South Carolina Democrat Michael B. Moore poses on the grounds of the International African American Museum where he served as founding president and CEO in Charleston, South Carolina in an undated photograph. Moore is vying to unseat Republican incumbent Nancy Mace in South Carolina’s 1st congressional district. Ashley...
"We would love to have those voters back," said Moore, who seeks to win the Democratic primary and then unseat Republican incumbent Nancy Mace. "It's the fair thing to do if federal courts have acknowledged that those voters were unconstitutionally disenfranchised." South Carolina officials have argued that their map was designed to secure partisan advantages, a practice that the Supreme Court in 2019 decided was not reviewable by federal courts - unlike racial gerrymandering, which remains illegal. The officials faulted the lower court for finding that the district's composition was motivated primarily by race rather than Republican interests.
The South Carolina legislature used the redistricting process to bolster Republican support in the district. The new map increased the district's share of white voters while reducing its share of Black voters, which the lower court referred to as "bleaching." Mace signed a brief urging the justices to preserve the Republican-drawn map. Mace's congressional office did not respond to a request for comment.