Judge rejects delay of ruling backing North Dakota tribes’ effort to change legislative boundaries

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A federal judge on Tuesday rejected a request to delay his decision supporting two Native American tribes that sought changes to North Dakota’s legislative boundaries to give the tribes more influence in the Legislature.

U.S. District Chief Judge Peter Welte denied Republican Secretary of State Michael Howe’s motion to stay his ruling, pending an expected appeal to the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians and the Spirit Lake Tribe filed the lawsuit early last year.

Last month, Welte ruled that the map violated the Voting Rights Act of 1965 in that it “prevents Native American voters from having an equal opportunity to elect candidates of their choice.” He gave Howe and the Republican-controlled Legislature until Dec. 22 “to adopt a plan to remedy the violation.”

Days after the Nov. 17 ruling, Howe announced his plans to appeal, citing a recent 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that private individuals and groups such as the NAACP can’t sue under a major section of the landmark civil rights law.

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Plaintiffs’ attorney Tim Purdon said the judge’s ruling “hits the nail squarely on the head” when Welte wrote that “the public interest lies in correcting Section 2 violations, particularly when those violations are proven by evidence and data at trial.”

“I remain hopeful that the Legislature might reconsider its position here, adopt a plan that’s been proposed by the tribes and approved by the court and halt the spending of taxpayer dollars on this litigation,” Purdon said.

Last week, a top legislative panel voted to intervene, or join in the lawsuit, but Welte denied a motion that lawmakers filed Friday.

The Turtle Mountain and Spirit Lake tribal chairs did not immediately respond to messages for comment. The judge also denied a motion by the tribes to order one of their proposed maps into place for the 2024 elections, if the Legislature didn’t act. He cited jurisdiction due to the expected appeal.

Howe said he hadn’t seen the ruling and declined to comment. His motion to the stay judgment from earlier those month indicated he will seek a stay pending appeal from the 8th Circuit before Jan. 1, when candidates can begin petitioning for the ballot.

Republican House Majority Leader Mike Lefor said the Legislature will file motions to intervene and to stay the judgment with the 8th Circuit.

“It’s basically in large part what we expected was going to happen, and now we need to have our case heard before the 8th Circuit,” Lefor said.

The Legislature’s redistricting panel is meeting on Wednesday for the first time since it adjourned in 2021, to begin addressing Welte’s November ruling, including a look at the maps the tribes proposed.

“We’re still going to weigh in because we don’t know how the courts will rule so we need to be prepared, either way,” Lefor said.

The two tribes had alleged the 2021 redistricting map “simultaneously packs Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians members into one house district, and cracks Spirit Lake Tribe members out of any majority Native house district.”

The two tribes sought a joint district and unsuccessfully proposed to the Legislature a single legislative district encompassing the two reservations, which are roughly 60 miles (97 kilometers) apart.

North Dakota has 47 legislative districts, each with one senator and two representatives. Republicans control the House of Representatives 82-12 and the Senate 43-4. At least two lawmakers, both House Democrats, are members of tribes.

The Legislature created four subdistricts in the state House, including one each for the Fort Berthold and Turtle Mountain Indian reservations.

Lawmakers who were involved in the 2021 redistricting process have previously cited 2020 census numbers meeting population requirements of the Voting Rights Act for creating those subdistricts.