Alabama lawmakers have refused to create a second majority-Black congressional district
An Alabama Senate committee discusses a proposal to draw new congressional district lines on Thursday, July 20, 2023 in Montgomery, Ala. Alabama lawmakers face a July 21 deadline to draw new congressional lines after the U.S. Supreme Court in June upheld a finding that the current state map— with one majority-Black district out of seven in a state that is 27% Black — likely violates the federal Voting Rights Act. MONTGOMERY, Ala.
Republicans have been reluctant to create a Democratic-leaning district and are engaging in a high-stakes wager that the panel will accept their proposal or that the state will prevail in a second round of appeals. Republicans argued that the map meets the court’s directive and draws compact districts that comply with redistricting guidelines.
The three-judge panel ruled in 2022 that the current legislative map likely violates the federal Voting Rights Act and said any map should include two districts where"Black voters either comprise a voting-age majority" or something close. The Supreme CourtNow that the plan has passed, the fight will shift quickly back to the federal court. The plaintiffs who won the Supreme Court case have vowed to fight the proposal if enacted.
Black Alabama lawmakers say it's crucial that their constituents have a better chance of electing their choices. “They have pretended as though the court didn’t say what it said,” said Kareem Crayton, senior director for voting and representation at New York University’s Brennan Center for Justice. The Brennan Center filed a brief supporting the plaintiffs before the Supreme Court.
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