Find Court Cases > Karcher v. Daggett

Karcher v. Daggett

Case Date: 03/02/1983
Docket No: none

Facts of the Case 

Democrats in control of the New Jersey Legislature designed a plan for congressional redistricting in the state which the outgoing Democratic governor signed into law. Even though the district populations differed by less than one percent from each other, they were clearly drawn to maximize Democratic power in the state.

Question 

Did the gerrymandering in the reapportionment plan violate Article I, Section 2 of the Constitution?

Argument Karcher v. Daggett - Oral ArgumentFull Transcript Text  Download MP3 Conclusion  Decision: 5 votes for Daggett, 4 vote(s) against Legal provision: Article 1, Section 2, Paragraph 1: Composition of the House of Representatives

Even though the population differences in the districts were slight, the Court held that they were unconstitutional because they "were not the result of a good-faith effort to achieve population equality." Justice Brennan upheld past Court decisions (Kirkpatrick v. Preisler, 1973, and Wesberry v. Sanders, 1964) and argued that relying on a strict numerical standard of populations to assess district equality would be misguided.