---
kind: "section"
citation: "28 C.F.R. § 51.61"
title: "28"
number: "51.61"
heading: "Annexations."
url: "https://uscodex.org/cfr/28/51.61"
---

# §51.61. Annexations.

- (a) **Coverage.** Annexations and deannexations, even of uninhabited land, are subject to [section 5](/cfr/28/5.md) preclearance to the extent that they alter or are calculated to alter the composition of a jurisdiction's electorate. See, e.g., City of Pleasant Grove v. United States, 479 U.S. 462 (1987). In analyzing annexations and deannexations under [section 5](/cfr/28/5.md), the Attorney General considers the purpose and effect of the annexations and deannexations only as they pertain to voting.
- (b) **Section 5 review.** It is the practice of the Attorney General to review all of a jurisdiction's unprecleared annexations and deannexations together. See City of Pleasant Grove v. United States, C.A. No. 80-2589 (D.D.C. Oct. 7, 1981).
- (c) **Relevant factors.** In making determinations with respect to annexations, the Attorney General, in addition to the factors described above, will consider the following factors (among others):
  - (1) The extent to which a jurisdiction's annexations reflect the purpose or have the effect of excluding minorities while including other similarly situated persons.
  - (2) The extent to which the annexations reduce a jurisdiction's minority population percentage, either at the time of the submission or, in view of the intended use, for the reasonably foreseeable future.
  - (3) Whether the electoral system to be used in the jurisdiction fails fairly to reflect minority voting strength as it exists in the post-annexation jurisdiction. See City of Richmond v. United States, 422 U.S. 358, 367-72 (1975).

## Notes

### Amendments

[52 FR 490, Jan. 6, 1987; 52 FR 2648, Jan. 23, 1987, as amended by Order No. 3262-2011, 76 FR 21249, Apr. 15, 2011]

### Authority

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 301; 28 U.S.C. 509, 510, and 42 U.S.C. 1973b, 1973c.

### Source

Source: 52 FR 490, Jan. 6, 1987, unless otherwise noted.

### Amendments

[52 FR 490, Jan. 6, 1987; 52 FR 2648, Jan. 23, 1987, as amended by Order No. 3262-2011, 76 FR 21249, Apr. 15, 2011]