Davis v. Bandemer

Davis v. Bandemer
Supreme Court of the United States
Argued October 7, 1985 Decided June 30, 1986
Full case name	Davis, et al. v. Bandemer, et al.
Citations	478 U.S. 109 (more) 106 S. Ct. 2797; 92 L. Ed. 2d 85; 1986 U.S. LEXIS 122; 54 U.S.L.W. 4898
Prior history	Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana
Holding
Claims of partisan gerrymandering were justiciable, but failed to agree on a clear standard for judicial review of those claims. The decision was later limited with respect to many of the elements directly involving issues of redistricting and political gerrymandering, but was somewhat broadened with respect to less significant ancillary procedural issues.
Court membership
Chief Justice Warren E. Burger Associate Justices William J. Brennan, Jr. · Byron White Thurgood Marshall · Harry Blackmun Lewis F. Powell, Jr. · William Rehnquist John P. Stevens · Sandra Day O'Connor
Case opinions
Majority	White (part II), joined by Brennan, Marshall, Blackmun, Powell, Stevens
Plurality	White (parts I, III, IV), joined by Brennan, Marshall, Blackmun
Concurrence	Burger
Concurrence	O'Connor, joined by Burger, Rehnquist
Concur/dissent	Powell, joined by Stevens
Laws applied
U.S. Const. amend. XIV

Davis v. Bandemer, 478 U.S. 109 (1986), is a case in which the United States Supreme Court held that claims of partisan gerrymandering were justiciable, but failed to agree on a clear standard for the judicial review of the class of claims of a political nature to which such cases belong. The decision was later limited with respect to many of the elements directly involving issues of redistricting and political gerrymandering, but was somewhat broadened with respect to less significant ancillary procedural issues.

Background

Democrats in the state of Indiana challenged the state's 1981 state apportionment scheme for Indiana General Assembly districts because of political gerrymandering. The Democrats argued that "the apportionment unconstitutionally diluted their votes in important districts, violating their rights."

See also

• List of United States Supreme Court cases, volume 478
• List of United States Supreme Court cases
• Lists of United States Supreme Court cases by volume
• List of United States Supreme Court cases by the Rehnquist Court