"However, the most important factors could be two provisions of the Voting Rights Act that are far off most people’s radar screen: Section 2 and Section 5.
Section 2 provides a broad prohibition on voting discrimination. A voting practice, including the drawing of district lines, is discriminatory if it provides minorities with less opportunity than other members of the electorate to participate in the electoral process and to elect representatives of their choice. District lines cannot be drawn so that densely populated minority communities are prevented from electing members of their subgroup. In California, Latinos have been the only minority group at the legislative level that have reached “majority-minority” status and merit consideration under Section 2. The 2010 census and particularly the calculation of Citizen Voting Age Population could extend this to African Americans in one or two districts.
Based on population estimates there are more than a dozen districts that have majority-minority status. Under Section 2, the Commission will need to be cognizant of these minority groups in these districts, and make sure that district lines do not reduce the voting power of these groups."
Redistricting: Legal arguments complicate drawing the maps
Capitol Weekly:
