Reynolds v. Sims
Reynolds v. Sims is a landmark Supreme Court case decided in 1964 that addressed the apportionment of state legislative districts in the United States. The ruling established the principle of "one person, one vote," mandating that both houses of a state legislature must be apportioned based on population rather than geography. Prior to this decision, many states allocated an equal number of senators to each county regardless of population, similar to the structure of the U.S. Senate. The Supreme Court's decision highlighted the disparity in representation and aimed to ensure that every citizen's vote carried equal weight. It emphasized the importance of fair representation in a democratic system, rejecting the notion that counties should have equal representation regardless of their population. Despite the ruling, there were significant public protests and attempts to amend the Constitution in response. Reynolds v. Sims remains a crucial case in discussions about electoral fairness and the representation of diverse populations in legislative bodies.
Reynolds v. Sims
Date: June 15, 1964
Citation: 377 U.S. 533
Issue: Reapportionment
Significance: The Supreme Court clearly established the one person, one vote principle for all legislative districting except the U.S. Senate.
Many states had state senates apportioned on a geographical basis, providing an equal number of senators to each county no matter how widely the population varied, just as the U.S. Senate was apportioned. The Supreme Court, by an 8-1 vote, ruled that both houses of a state legislature had to be apportioned according to the one person, one vote principle that the Court laid down in Gray v. Sanders (1963). However, the Court did not accept that counties stood in relation to their state as the states did in relation to the nation and allowed an exception to the one person, one vote principle in apportionment for the U.S. Senate. This decision led to widespread protests and an unsuccessful attempt to overturn the decision through constitutional amendment.