Allison Riggs Appointed to North Carolina Court of Appeals, Steps Down from Service as LWVUS Board Member
WASHINGTON – Thursday, LWVUS board member Allison Riggs was appointed to the North Carolina Court of Appeals as an associate judge. The following statement was issued by Dr. Deborah Ann Turner, president of the League of Women Voters of the United States:
“Allison Riggs is an accomplished attorney who has represented the League of Women Voters before the United States Supreme Court. Since 2020, she has served as a member of the national board of directors of the League of Women Voters of the United States and has chaired important committee work, supporting staff on critical legal and legislative initiatives. We are thrilled for her professional achievements and for the people of North Carolina, who have a strong advocate for democracy in their corner.
“Today is bittersweet for the League family, as I accepted Allison’s resignation from the LWVUS board of directors. As a nonpartisan organization, it is League policy that board members do not hold partisan positions. We are grateful for Allison’s contributions to our organization, and we celebrate her success as an example of the power of women to create a more perfect democracy.”
About Allison Riggs: Since 2009, Allison has worked with the Southern Coalition for Social Justice (SCSJ), a trusted litigation partner of the League in important cases such as League of Women Voters of North Carolina v. Rucho, the 2019 landmark redistricting case which Allison argued in front of the US Supreme Court, and Judicial Watch v. North Carolina, in which she was instrumental in ensuring clean voter rolls. Her voting rights work at SCSJ has focused on working for fair redistricting plans, fighting against voter suppression, and advocating for electoral reforms that would expand access to voting. She is one of a stunningly small percentage of women who have argued cases before the US Supreme Court.
The Latest from the League
March 26th marks the anniversary of the landmark Rucho v. League of Women Voters of North Carolina (also known as Rucho v. Common Cause) Supreme Court oral arguments. The Supreme Court's ultimate decision, that federal courts cannot make determinations on partisan gerrymandering, would have major consequences for representation across our democracy.
We spoke with Allison Riggs, who was chosen to represent the plaintiffs and argued the case before the Supreme Court. Now, Riggs, who is now co-executive director and chief counsel for the Southern Coalition for Social Justice, gives us her first-hand account of what happened in the courts.
The LWVNC v. Rucho case is a partisan gerrymandering challenge to the North Carolina congressional map. Partisan gerrymandering is the practice of drawing electoral district lines in a way that discriminates against a political party.
On March 26, the U.S. Supreme Court heard three high-profile cases pertaining to gerrymandering, including Rucho v. League of Women Voters of North Carolina.
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