Supreme Court Term Concludes with Rulings on Citizenship, Voting, and Transgender Sports Participation

Why it matters locally: The Supreme Court's ruling on transgender sports participation directly impacts policy decisions and potentially future legislative efforts concerning public schools and universities in New Mexico. Additionally, decisions on birthright citizenship and voting rights could influence demographic and electoral processes within the state, as New Mexico shares a border with Mexico and has a significant Hispanic population.

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WASHINGTON – The Supreme Court concluded its 2025-26 term, releasing final opinions and attending to administrative matters during its annual 'clean-up conference.' This period saw rulings on significant cases concerning birthright citizenship, voting rights, and transgender sports participation, alongside internal data revealing increased ideological divisions within the court. In one key decision, the Supreme Court struck down an executive order that sought to limit access to automatic birthright citizenship. Following this ruling, President Donald Trump urged Republican members of Congress to pursue legislative action to restrict or end birthright citizenship. House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican from Louisiana, indicated that congressional efforts might involve a constitutional amendment or statutory measures. Associate Justice Amy Coney Barrett faced criticism from right-wing commentators after siding with the majority in cases that opposed two components of the Trump administration's agenda: limiting birthright citizenship and restricting mail-in voting. *The New York Times* reported that pundits and Republican officials viewed Justice Barrett's votes as a deviation from the administration's positions, while other conservative commentators commended her approach. The Court also ruled against transgender student athletes in a case permitting state laws to ban their participation on female sports teams at public schools and universities. This decision, reported by Reuters, represents a further setback for transgender individuals challenging restrictions. Justice Brett Kavanaugh, in *West Virginia v. B.P.J.*, stated, “allowing biological males to play on women’s and girls’ sports teams can put female athletes at a serious disadvantage.” Justice Sonia Sotomayor, dissenting, countered, “Sports, of course, are often zero sum, but the law need not and should not be.” Some advocates for transgender rights suggested the ruling’s focus on sports did not preclude future challenges to other restrictions. Separately, the Supreme Court declined to hear President Trump's challenge to a $5 million jury verdict in a sexual abuse and defamation case brought by E. Jean Carroll. According to CBS News, President Trump's legal team intends to seek reconsideration of his appeal and requested a delay in payment of the $5 million, which Carroll's lawyer, Roberta Kaplan, declined. Data compiled for the 2025-26 term indicated a rise in ideological division compared to the previous term. The percentage of decisions rendered by a 6-3 vote increased from 15.2% to 28.8%. Cases decided with a 6-3 ideological split rose from 9% to 22.7%. Additionally, liberal justices dissented together in 24.2% of cases, up from 15%. Before the summer recess, the justices convened for their 'clean-up conference.' This conference serves as an internal deadline for releasing opinions related to pending orders and addressing remaining certiorari petitions. Petitions can be relisted for further consideration, held pending related cases, granted, or denied. Petitions often undergo a 'GVR' process, where the court grants the petition, vacates a lower court's decision, and remands the case for reconsideration based on a new opinion. This year, the clean-up conference resulted in seven GVRs. The clean-up conference has also become a forum for granting new cases for the upcoming term. During this year's conference, the justices accepted four new cases, including one addressing whether the Second Amendment protects possession of semiautomatic rifles. Previously, the June 2023 clean-up conference added seven cases to the argument docket, including *United States v. Rahimi*, a Second Amendment challenge concerning a federal ban on gun possession for individuals under domestic violence restraining orders. The 2022 clean-up conference saw three new grants, including *Moore v. Harper*, which examined state legislatures' power over federal elections. Historically, these conferences have also generated separate opinions from justices dissenting from the court's decisions to hear or not hear certain cases. The 'clean-up conference' differs from the 'long conference' held in the fall, which addresses petitions accumulated over the summer recess.