Argument Preview: Riley v. Kennedy

Thomas Haymore wrote this brief preview of Monday’s argument in Riley v. Kennedy. Read his full entry on SCOTUSwiki. Please note that Thomas was one of the students on the Stanford team representing the appellees.

When a state’s highest court relies on the state constitution to invalidate a state law, and the state is subject to Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, do the court’s actions constitute a “change” that triggers Section 5’s preclearance requirements? Does the preclearance of a trial court’s ruling that affects voting set a new baseline for measuring future voting-related changes under Section 5 if that court’s ruling is in the process of being appealed?

In the third case on Monday, No. 07-77, Riley v. Kennedy, the Supreme Court will consider these questions to determine whether the Governor of Alabama had the right to fill a vacancy on the Mobile County Commission by appointment, or whether that vacancy must instead be filled through a special election.