Court denies state’s motion to dismiss city’s redistricting lawsuit

posted on 7/19/2023

Litigation continues in the lawsuit filed by the City of Dover against the Secretary of State that argues the New Hampshire House of Representatives redistricting law violates the New Hampshire Constitution.

Following a hearing in the Strafford County Superior Court on the state’s motion to dismiss the city’s lawsuit on May 5, Judge Mark Howard denied the motion in a June 23 court order, allowing the lawsuit to continue to trial. On Monday, July 10, the state filed a motion for the court to reconsider its decision. The city filed an objection to the motion to reconsider on Thursday, July 13.

The lawsuit centers around how state legislators drew redistricting maps following the release of the 2020 Census data in 2021. House Bill 50, signed into law on March 23, 2022, groups Dover’s Ward 4 residents into two districts combined with other towns. The complaint alleges that other municipalities, including Barrington, Hooksett, Lee, New Ipswich, Rochester, and Wilton, had combined representation with neighboring municipalities, despite New Hampshire Constitutional requirements requiring a dedicated district for political wards and towns with sufficient population.

The City of Dover filed the lawsuit against the State of New Hampshire and the New Hampshire Secretary of State on July 26, 2022. The City of Rochester and 10 voters from various municipalities, including Ward 4 Councilor Debra Hackett in her personal capacity only and not as a city councilor, have joined Dover in the lawsuit. The plaintiffs’ complaint asks the court to either redraw or order the state to redraw the house representation maps for the affected towns and wards in compliance with the state constitution.

The lawsuit follows the New Hampshire Supreme Court’s May 17, 2022, denial of the City of Dover’s petition for the court to take original jurisdiction of the city’s request for the Supreme Court to review the constitutionality of the redistricting legislation directly. The city had sought the Supreme Court to address the matter directly to obtain a ruling on the merits in advance of the 2022 elections related to the New Hampshire House of Representatives.

Find Strafford County Superior Court and New Hampshire Supreme Court filings on the City Attorney’s Current Litigation webpage https://www.dover.nh.gov/government/city-operations/executive/city-attorney/current-litigation/.