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A4 U.S. NEWS
Thursday 27 February 2020

Court OKs Texas winner-take-all presidential elector system

By KEVIN McGILL court said Wednesday. est defeat for organizations
Associated Press A three-judge panel of challenging such systems
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The the 5th U.S. Circuit Court in Texas and three other
winner-take-all system Tex- of Appeals in New Or- states. Cases are pending
as and 47 other states use leans unanimously upheld at the appellate level in at
to assign Electoral College a lower court's dismissal of least two of those cases.
presidential votes is consti- a lawsuit challenging the Domingo Garcia, national
tutional, a federal appeals Texas system. It was the lat- president of the League of

In this July 9, 2019 file photo, people wait in line to enter the 5th
Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans.
Associated Press

United Latin American Citi- idential candidate.
zens, a lead plaintiff in the Among those pushing the
case, said he expects the challenges are LULAC and
issue to wind up at the Su- attorney David Boies, who
preme Court. LULAC said in represented then-Vice
a news release that it was President Al Gore in the liti-
considering its next move. gation over the Florida vote
The league and its allies count in the 2000 presiden-
could request a rehearing tial election.
by the full 5th Circuit, which The challenges say the win-
has 16 active members, or ner-take-all system violates
go straight to the Supreme the "one-person, one-vote"
Court. principle arising from con-
The 5th Circuit ruling cited stitutional equal protection
appellate and Supreme and freedom of associa-
Court decisions dating tion rights.
back to the 1960s that But the 5th Circuit panel
have upheld the winner- cited court precedents
take-all system. It rejected holding that each citizen in
challengers' assertions that each state is afforded the
electors should be allocat- opportunity to vote and
ed proportionately, based that the winner-take-all sys-
on a percentage of the tem does not deprive any-
popular vote for each pres- one of that right. q