Did the Supreme Court sidestep North Dakota’s voting rights case?

The U.S. Supreme Court vacated a lower court’s decision regarding North Dakota’s legislative redistricting and sent the case back for further review rather than issuing a definitive ruling on broader Voting Rights Act questions. 

The case, brought by Native American tribes, argues that North Dakota’s legislative map unlawfully diluted Native voting strength. 

By sending the case back to the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, the Supreme Court bypassed a direct ruling on a high-stakes question: whether private individuals and civil rights groups have the right to bring lawsuits under Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act without the U.S. Department of Justice. 

Instead, the justices instructed the lower court to re-evaluate the case in light of the Supreme Court’s decision in Louisiana v. Callais.