Court Rejects GOP Map
A three-judge panel blocked Alabama from using a Republican-drawn congressional map for the upcoming midterm elections. The judges determined the map "intentionally discriminated based on race in violation of the Constitution." The decision means Alabama cannot use the 2023 congressional map, which the same court previously found discriminatory.
Discriminatory Intent
The court panel, consisting of Circuit Judge Stanley Marcus and District Judges Anna Manasco and Terry Moorer, stated, "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." The judges rejected the state's argument that mapmakers were driven by party politics when they redrew the House district lines in 2023. Instead, they found that state lawmakers enacted that map to "distribute Black voters across districts to dilute their votes, at least in part because they were Black."
Legal Challenges
The ruling is the latest development in a legal fight over Alabama's congressional map that began in 2021. After the Supreme Court weakened the Voting Rights Act in the Louisiana v Callais case in April, Alabama moved its congressional primary and sought to use the 2023 congressional map. The 2023 map included one majority-Black district. The court ordered Alabama to adopt a map with two majority-Black districts that both elected Democrats.
Political Implications
Alabama's congressional delegation currently consists of five Republicans and two Democrats. Republicans hoped the new map would help them flip the seat held by Rep. Shomari Figures, a Democrat. Figures said he is "pleased" with the court's decision. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries accused Republicans and President Trump of engaging in a "desperate power grab" by redrawing congressional maps.
State's Response
Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall said the state would "immediately appeal" the decision to the Supreme Court. "Know this—in my mind, it is not a matter of whether we win this case, only when," Marshall said. Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey scheduled a special primary for August 11 for four House districts that would be reconfigured under the new map.
National Impact
The effort to redraw the map in Alabama was part of a Republican-led effort to redraw districts after the Callais decision, with the goal of adding Republican-friendly seats ahead of the midterms. Tennessee implemented a new congressional map wiping out a majority-Black congressional district based in Memphis. Louisiana is also poised to get rid of a majority-Black district, and South Carolina may follow. The court gave state lawmakers the chance to enact another congressional districting plan, writing that its order requiring Alabama's congressional elections be administered under the court-drawn map expires if the state adopts new voting lines.
