August Primary Could Be Delayed by Court

U.S. District Judge Robert Lasnik is weighing whether to revisit Washington’s current legislative district map less than three months before the state’s August 4 primary. The dispute stems from a May 4 motion filed by intervenors in the Yakima Valley redistricting case, who asked Lasnik to set aside the map he imposed in March 2024 after finding the state’s prior map violated Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. State election officials and the Latino voters who won that case say changing the lines now could disrupt an election cycle that is already underway. The immediate question is whether a new U.S. Supreme Court ruling in a Louisiana redistricting case gives the federal court reason to reopen Washington’s case. ### Why is a judge looking at Washington’s map again? May 4 is the date Jose Trevino, Ismael Campos and state Rep. Alex Ybarra asked Lasnik for relief from his earlier judgments in Soto Palmer v. Hobbs. Their filing argues that the Supreme Court’s April 29 decision in Louisiana v. Callais changed the legal framework enough that the Washington remedial map should be revisited. (washingtonstatestandard.com) The map at issue is the court-drawn remedy for the Yakima Valley region. Robert Lasnik ruled on August 10, 2023 that the Washington State Redistricting Commission’s 2021 legislative map violated Section 2, then imposed a replacement known as Map 3B in March 2024 after the commission did not produce a new plan. That map was used in the 2024 election. (campaignlegal.org) ### What changed in the Supreme Court’s Louisiana case? April 29, 2026 is when the Supreme Court decided Louisiana v. Callais. SCOTUSblog’s case summary says the court held that the Voting Rights Act did not require Louisiana to create an additional majority-minority district and that race-based line drawing in that map was not justified on that record. (campaignlegal.org) The Washington challengers say that ruling undercuts the legal basis for the Yakima Valley remedy. The Latino voters who sued Washington say it does not. In a response filed in district court, they argued that Lasnik’s Map 3B “was drawn without consideration of race” and said the intervenors’ motion should be denied. ### How many candidates could be affected right now? (scotusblog.com) Stuart Holmes, Washington’s elections director, told the court that 67 of the 294 people who filed last week for legislative office are seeking seats in districts whose boundaries changed under the current map. Secretary of State Steve Hobbs said in court papers that restoring the old lines now would be “a recipe for chaos,” according to reporting by the Washington State Standard and other outlets that reviewed the filings. (campaignlegal.org) May 4 through May 8 was the state’s candidate filing period for 2026, and May 11 was the withdrawal deadline. The Secretary of State’s office says candidate filing is closed, and state candidates must be registered to vote in the district for which they file. ### Could this actually delay the August primary? August 4, 2026 is Washington’s scheduled primary date, and ballots are set to be mailed starting July 17 under the state elections calendar. (heraldnet.com) That leaves election administrators less than two months before ballots go out. State officials have told the court that a late change in district lines could force major administrative revisions. (sos.wa.gov) The Washington State Standard reported that officials warned the move could take “a wrecking ball” to the primary and possibly require it to be rescheduled. Those warnings are attributed to the state’s court filings, not to any order Lasnik has issued so far. ### Where does the broader case stand? August 27, 2025 is when the Ninth Circuit affirmed key parts of Lasnik’s remedial order. The appeals court said the district court had enjoined the commission’s map and then fashioned a remedial map in its place after the commission declined to do so. January 23, 2026 is when the intervenors filed a petition for certiorari in Trevino v. (washingtonstatestandard.com) Hobbs at the U.S. Supreme Court. SCOTUSblog says responses from the Washington plaintiffs and the state are due June 2, 2026. ### What should voters and candidates watch next? June 2, 2026 is the next clear date in the Supreme Court docket, when responses are due in Trevino v. (cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov) Hobbs. In Washington’s election calendar, July 17 is the start of the 18-day voting period for the primary, when ballots are mailed, and August 4 is primary day. (scotusblog.com)