Earl Warren, a former governor of the State of California, was appointed by President Eisenhower to the Supreme Court in 1953. Two very significant cases heard by the court was in the case of Baker v Carr and Reynolds V. Sims. It was the opinion of the Supreme Court that the apportionment in many of the state legislatures violated the equal protection of the law clause in the Fourteenth Amendment.
The state of California aligned with Earl Warren's position and without a Constitutional Amendment, he was able to amend the state Constitution with the approval of the voters of California.
He apparently felt that the Federal government's apportionment in the Senate was Constitutional, but the unequal representation in the states was unconstitutional.
In the Senate of the United States, each state is entitled to two Senators, but in the several states, there are counties with no representation at all. Why did Warren support equal representation of the states and unequal representation in the counties.
The counties in Northern California have a relatively small population, but are blessed with large quantities of water. The counties in the south have a very large population and very little water. Warren realized that by stripping the Northern Counties of their Senators, he could deliver Northern water to the south with very little opposition.
It is morally wrong for the northernmost counties to be compelled to supply that water to the southernmost counties without the consent of the governed. By stripping the counties in Northern California of a voice in the senate, Justice Earl Warren knew that he would be able to deliver water to the heavily populated counties and it would pay big dividends at the ballot box for him and his political allies.
California's first Constitution mandated that each of the counties would have one representative in the state senate. In 1965 the Supreme Court caused the State of California to amend the Constitution without the approval of the voters in order to strip some of the counties of equal representation. This was a flagrant violation of the Constitution and we need to demand the restoration of the counties in the state senate.
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California's first Constitution mandated that each of the counties would have one representative in the state senate. In 1965 the Supreme Court caused the State of California to amend the Constitution without the approval of the voters in order to strip some of the counties of equal representation. This was a flagrant violation of the Constitution and we need to demand the restoration of the counties in the state senate.