A new ruling out of North Carolina has cast doubt on whether the U.S. Supreme Court will decide this term's closely watched election case over the so-called independent state legislature theory.

The justices are currently considering in Moore v. Harper whether the North Carolina Supreme Court overstepped its authority when it ruled that partisan gerrymandering violates the state Constitution. Republican state lawmakers say that the federal Constitution gives the Legislature the power to  draw election districts—not state courts. This controversial theory of an "independent state legislature" could have drastic effects on election law going forward, experts say.