Also known as: political question · political questions doctrine · political question doctrine
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A category of constitutional issues that federal courts decline to adjudicate. Such issues arise when the Constitution commits the matter to another branch of government or when no judicially manageable standards exist for resolution.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Piper Patel and other voters sued state officials over a legislative map that allegedly diluted their votes in urban districts. The complaint relied on equal protection principles and presented population data showing unequal district sizes. The court found no textually committed issue or lack of standards and allowed the case to move forward on the merits.
Pierce Patterson, a removed federal judge, challenged the Senate's use of a committee to hear evidence in his impeachment trial. The suit claimed the procedure violated the constitutional requirement of a full Senate trial. The court dismissed the action because the Constitution assigns the sole power to try impeachments to the Senate.
Pavel Petrov and a group of citizens sued to invalidate a state initiative process that bypassed the legislature. They argued the process violated the federal guarantee of a republican form of government. The court held the claim presented a nonjusticiable political question and refused to reach the merits.
Preston Pratt and a coalition of voters filed suit alleging that a new congressional map deliberately favored one party through extreme packing and cracking. The complaint relied solely on partisan asymmetry metrics and efficiency gap calculations. The court dismissed the action as a nonjusticiable political question under the federal Constitution.
Pamela Phillips, a federal taxpayer, challenged congressional spending on religious education programs. The complaint asserted that the expenditures violated the Establishment Clause. The court examined whether the plaintiff had standing to raise the claim rather than treating it as a political question.
Pacific Bank held assets seized by a foreign government. The bank sued to recover the property and asked the court to determine the validity of the foreign seizure. The court declined to adjudicate the underlying title question because it implicated the act of state doctrine.
Courts apply a six-factor test. The factors include a textually demonstrable constitutional commitment to another branch, a lack of judicially manageable standards, the need for an initial policy determination, respect for coordinate branches, adherence to a prior political decision, and the risk of embarrassment from conflicting pronouncements. When any factor is present the case is nonjusticiable.
No. Partisan gerrymandering claims present nonjusticiable political questions under the federal Constitution. Federal courts will not invalidate districting maps solely on the ground that they favor one political party over another. The absence of judicially manageable standards prevents adjudication.
…of a nonjusticiable political question satisfies us that our assertion of jurisdiction over these cases does no violence to the political question doctrine. As identified in Baker v. Carr , 369 U. S. 186, 217 (1962), a political question may arise when any one of the following circumstances is present: "a textually demonstrable…
…this requires no less than to analyze representative cases and to infer from them the analytical threads that make up the political question doctrine. We shall then show that none of those threads catches this case. Foreign relations: There are sweeping statements to the effect that all
…claim, to have the case decided on the merits. Standing has become a barrier to access to the federal courts, just as "the political question" was in earlier decades. The mounting caseload of federal courts is well known. But cases such as this one reflect festering sores in our society; and the American dream teaches that if one…
…provide the basis for cases that, absent a standing question, could not readily be excluded from the federal courts as involving political questions
…Navegacion Maritima, S. A. , v. The Navemar , 303 U. S. 68, 74. See generally Dickinson, The Law of Nations As National Law: "Political Questions
Yes. The Constitution textually commits the sole power to try all impeachments to the Senate. Procedures such as delegating evidence-taking to a committee therefore present nonjusticiable political questions. Courts will not review those procedural choices.
No. Claims that a state does not maintain a republican form of government under the Guarantee Clause present nonjusticiable political questions. Such claims are not subject to judicial enforcement and remain committed to the political branches.
Apportionment challenges are justiciable when none of the six political question factors is present. Equal protection claims supported by population data and manageable standards may proceed. The mere fact that the suit involves a political right does not render it nonjusticiable.