Blockbuster Supreme Court decisions to come on student loans, affirmative action and more
The Supreme Court has left this term's blockbuster decisions for last, with rulings expected this week on student loans, affirmative action and more.
The justices will hand down their next round of opinions on Thursday at 10 a.m. ET. There are seven total cases remaining from the term that began back in October.
Their rulings will decide the fate of millions of Americans with federal student loans, a 40-year precedent of race-conscious college admissions processes and LGBTQ+ rights.
On Tuesday, the Supreme Court handed down a major ruling rejecting the fringe "independent state legislature" theory that threatened to upend election laws nationwide.
Earlier this term, the Supreme Court weighed in on cases involving the Voting Rights Act, the Biden administration's deportation policy, the Indian Child Welfare Act and social media liability.
Here's a closer look at the major issues left to be resolved by the month's end.
Affirmative action
A conservative advocacy group is asking the justices to reverse decades of precedent and ban the use of race-conscious admissions policies, arguing they discriminate against Asian-American applicants, in Students for Fair Admissions v. University of North Carolina and Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard.
The universities, in their respective cases, insisted race is one factor among many used in a holistic assessment of student applicants and that their processes adhere to precedent.
The court's conservative majority appeared poised to roll back affirmative action after hearing more arguments in both cases last fall.
Election law and the 'independent state legislature' theory
In Moore v. Harper, a redistricting case out of North Carolina, the justices were asked to consider the "independent state legislature" theory contending state lawmakers have near unfettered power to regulate federal elections free from traditional constraints such as state constitutions or courts under the Elections Clause.
Chief Justice John Roberts, in a 6-3 decision on Tuesday, rejected the theory. Roberts was joined by Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, Ketanji Brown Jackson, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett.
"The Elections Clause does not insulate state legislatures from the ordinary exercise of state judicial review," Roberts wrote, citing the court's precedents. "A state legislature may not create congressional districts independently of requirements imposed by the state constitution with respect to the enactment of laws."
Election and democracy experts warned the theory, if adopted in its most extreme application, would have a dramatic impact on how elections are run.
Justices Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch and Samuel Alito dissented, arguing the case should have been dismissed after several state-level developments they said rendered it "moot."
LGBTQ+ rights and free speech
In 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis, a Colorado wedding website designer is asking the Supreme Court to strike down Colorado's public accommodation law, arguing it infringes on her First Amendment right to free speech.
The designer, who opposes gay marriage, said the law -- which requires her to serve LGBTQ+ customers or face a fine -- compels her to go against her religious beliefs.
Lower courts ruled in Colorado's favor but the Supreme Court seemed sympathetic to the designer's case during arguments late last year.
Student loans
The court will determine whether President Joe Biden's $400 billion plan to forgive student loan debt will move forward. The plan, announced by the administration last September, would wipe out up to $20,000 in federal student loan debt for more than 40 million Americans.
The move was challenged by six Republican-led states, which argued the administration exceeded its authority while also unfairly excluding Americans who don't qualify and costing loan servicers revenue. Two student-loan borrowers denied relief under the program also sued.
The two cases are Biden v. Nebraska and Department of Education v. Brown.
The court's conservative bloc seemed skeptical during February oral arguments of the Department of Education's power to waive billions in debt because of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, there were also questions about whether the states had legal standing to sue and how they would be harmed by the policy.
ABC News' Devin Dwyer contributed to this report.
