The Supreme Court has rejected an attempt by Alabama Republicans to use a congressional map that only includes one majority-Black district. The court refused emergency requests from Republican state officials to block lower court rulings that invalidated the new map. This decision aligns with the Supreme Court’s previous ruling in June that upheld a provision of the Voting Rights Act. The new map, similar to the previous one, only includes one district where Black voters are likely to elect a candidate of their choosing. Lower court judges have repeatedly ruled that Alabama’s Black population is large enough for there to be a second majority-Black district.
Alabama Republicans faced another setback as the Supreme Court rejected their request to use a congressional map that includes only one majority-Black district. The court denied emergency requests from Republican state officials to block lower court rulings that invalidated the new map. This decision follows the Supreme Court’s ruling in June, which reaffirmed a key provision of the Voting Rights Act. The previous map and the new map both only include one district where Black voters can effectively vote for a candidate of their choice. Despite the state’s Black population making up 27% of the total, it was declared that a second majority-Black district is required.
The Supreme Court’s decision marks a defeat for Alabama Republicans who were hoping to maintain their one majority-Black district. The new map was rejected in lower court rulings, with judges stating that an additional majority-Black district was necessary, in accordance with the Supreme Court’s previous ruling. The challengers, including individual voters and the Alabama State Conference of the NAACP, argued that the map violated the Voting Rights Act by discriminating against Black voters. Although two conservative justices joined the majority in the Supreme Court ruling in June, Justice Kavanaugh noted that challenges to the law were not ruled out, leaving room for future legal action.