Whether private parties may seek judicial enforcement of the Readmission Acts and bypass a State's sovereign immunity under Ex parte Young

In the aftermath of the Civil War, Congress enacted a series of “Readmission Acts”—largely identical statutes that imposed restrictions on former Confederate States as conditions of regaining representation in Congress. These conditions included constraints on the States’ ability to amend their own constitutions on topics such as voting rights and public education. For nearly 150 years, these statutes were never judicially enforced, as Congress retained sole enforcement power over the conditions it created. The court below held that the Readmission Acts are judicially enforceable by private parties under Ex parte Young , 209 U.S. 123 (1908). The questions presented are: 1. Whether private parties may seek judicial enforcement of the Readmission Acts. 2. Whether plaintiffs may invoke Ex parte Young to bypass a State’s sovereign immunity when they lack a cause of action.