On Tuesday, federal judges halted Alabama’s attempt to use a congressional map that might have favored Republicans in a crucial U.S. House race during the midterm elections. A panel of three judges involved in the state’s ongoing redistricting litigation issued a preliminary injunction. They ruled that the Republican-led plan “intentionally discriminated based on race” by creating only one Black-majority district. As a result, Alabama must use a court-ordered map for the 2024 elections that includes two districts where Black residents are a majority or nearly so.
The judges stated, “Ultimately, we cannot see our way clear to requiring Alabamians to cast their votes in the 2026 elections under a districting plan tainted by intentional race-based discrimination.” This decision is a drawback for Republicans aiming to use the map in the November midterms to potentially reclaim the seat held by Democratic U.S. Rep. Shomari Figures. The state may appeal this ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Rep. Figures expressed satisfaction with the decision yet anticipates an appeal. “This is a significant step in the right direction, but there is still a long way to go before this fight is settled,” he mentioned.
The legal and political saga continues, spurred by a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that invalidated a Black-majority district in Louisiana and weakened the federal Voting Rights Act.
This ruling prompted Republican efforts across Southern states, including Alabama, to modify voting districts with significant minority populations prone to elect Democrats. This redistricting activity aligns with former President Donald Trump’s efforts to maintain Republicans’ slim House majority.
The legal conflict in Alabama dates back several years. In 2023, a three-judge panel determined that a map drawn by Republican state lawmakers diluted Black citizens’ voting power. The court declared the state’s 27% Black population warranted two districts where Black voters form a majority or close. A court-selected map was utilized in 2024.
Following the Supreme Court’s recent ruling on the Louisiana case, Alabama aimed to apply the 2023 state-drawn map. The conservative Supreme Court majority lifted the injunction blocking its use and returned the case to the three-judge panel for reconsideration.
Upon further scrutiny, the panel cited “undisputed evidence” of intentional racial discrimination. They mandated that special congressional primaries proceed with the previous court-approved districts instead. The decision to block the switch followed a lengthy court hearing where judges questioned state lawyers about the timeline and implications of the Louisiana ruling.
Continuing with the existing districts prevents an “expensive, aggressive, and perhaps logistically impossible voter reassignment effort,” the judges concluded. “Candidate and voter confusion is troublesome and warrants significant consideration, but we do not see that a preliminary injunction will worsen it. To the contrary, we expect a preliminary injunction to lessen it,” they commented.
Deuel Ross from the NAACP Legal Defense Fund stated that the court’s ruling “again vindicated the constitutional rights of voters in the Black Belt,” and clients are eager to vote under a fair map.
Multiple states have also had to adjust their primary schedules to accommodate congressional redistricting after the U.S. Supreme Court’s Voting Rights Act decision. In Louisiana, congressional primaries initially scheduled for May 16 were postponed by Republican Gov. Jeff Landry to allow time for lawmakers to draft a new U.S. House map that would dissolve a majority-Black district.
In South Carolina, the Republican-led legislature is evaluating a plan to nullify votes from its June 9 congressional primary for a new August primary under revised districts that could boost Republicans’ chances at an additional seat. Tennessee swiftly enacted new U.S. House districts following the Supreme Court’s decision, breaking a Black-majority district in Memphis that elected the state’s only Democratic representative. The new map provides Republicans an opportunity to capture all nine of the state’s seats. Consequently, Tennessee temporarily reopened candidate qualifying for the August primaries, offering potential entrants to join or existing candidates to adjust or withdraw.
Since Trump’s push for Texas to redraw its U.S. House districts last summer, several Republican-dominated states have adopted new voting districts, although some still encounter legal obstacles. Meanwhile, Democrats have countered with new districts in California and anticipate gaining a seat through new court-enforced districts in Utah.