The ruling is a blow to North Carolina Republicans who had asked the court to embrace the so-called independent state legislature theory – the idea that the US constitution does not allow state courts to limit the power of state legislatures when it comes to federal elections. There was deep concern that embracing such an idea would upend US elections, essentially giving legislatures a blank check to write election laws without oversight from state courts. It would have been a massive win for Republicans, who control more state legislatures than Democrats do.
The court's decision means that state courts can continue to weigh in on disputes over federal election rules. State courts have become increasingly popular forums for hearing those disputes, especially after the US supreme court said in 2019 that federal courts could not address partisan gerrymandering...
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