292
Thomas, J., dissenting
see no reason to believe that Congress intended § 5 to require federal approval of the State's policy choices.3
The Government, as amicus curiae supporting appellants, suggests that the State enacted its district consolidation legislation at the County's suggestion, implying that the state judicial district consolidation statutes are the product of the County's policy choices. Brief for United States as Amicus Curiae 22-25. I recognize that in McDaniel v. Sanchez, 452 U. S. 130 (1981), we required preclearance of a court-ordered voting change in a covered jurisdiction because the plan that the court had ordered was submitted by, and reflected the policy choices of, that covered jurisdiction, even though we had decided, in Connor v. Johnson, 402 U. S. 690 (1971) (per curiam), that federal court-ordered voting changes need not be precleared. 452 U. S., at 147, 153. We stated that "[a]s we construe the congressional mandate, it requires that whenever a covered jurisdiction submits a proposal reflecting the policy choices of the elected representatives of the people . . . the preclearance requirement of the Voting
3 I recognize that we have interpreted § 5 to reach entities that did not obviously fall within the definition of covered "State or political subdivision" in prior cases. For example, in United States v. Sheffield Bd. of Comm'rs, 435 U. S. 110 (1978), we held that although the city of Sheffield, Alabama, was not a "political subdivision" under the Act, it was nevertheless subject to § 5's preclearance requirements because it was a "political unit" of the covered State. Id., at 127-128. Whether Sheffield was correct as an original matter, the "top-down" approach to coverage that it announced is simply not implicated in this case; appellants argue for a "bottom-up" approach to coverage questions that I do not believe the reasoning of Sheffield supports. And in Morse v. Republican Party of Va., 517 U. S. 186 (1996), the judgment of the Court was that § 5 could be extended to reach the activities of political parties in covered States. I adhere to the views that I expressed in dissent, but at most, that case stands for the proposition that for purposes of § 5 preclearance, "State" in some (but not all) instances is "coextensive with the constitutional doctrine of state action." Id., at 265 (Thomas, J., dissenting). Of course, this case requires us to interpret the phrase "seek to administer," not § 5's "State or political subdivision" language.
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