Opinion ID: 727396
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Politically Cohesive

Text: 30 That the minority group demonstrates it is politically cohesive embodies a similarly functional focus. If the minority group is not politically cohesive, it cannot be said that the selection of a multimember electoral structure thwarts distinctive minority group interests. Gingles, 478 U.S. at 51, 106 S.Ct. at 2766. Like the first Gingles' precondition, however, the Court does not expressly define political cohesiveness. Other courts have elaborated. 31 In Gomez v. City of Watsonville, 863 F.2d 1407, 1415 (9th Cir.1988), cert. denied, 489 U.S. 1080, 109 S.Ct. 1534, 103 L.Ed.2d 839 (1989), the Ninth Circuit observed, [t]he inquiry is essentially whether the minority group has expressed clear political preferences that are distinct from those of the majority. Thus, we judge political cohesiveness by looking at the voting preferences expressed in actual elections. Id. Necessarily, when we examine the evidence of political cohesiveness as voting preferences, we look to the same statistical evidence plaintiffs must offer to establish vote polarization. 13 Indeed, political cohesiveness is implicit in racially polarized voting. 14