The U.S. Supreme Court cleared the way for Alabama to use a newly drawn congressional map that contains only one majority-Black district, setting aside lower court decisions that had blocked the map. The decision, reported by multiple outlets, sends the litigation back to a lower court while the state moves forward with a map that Republicans drew in 2023.
Background: Following the 2020 census, Alabama’s Republican-controlled legislature approved a congressional map that included just one majority-Black district out of seven, despite Black residents making up about 27% of the state’s population. A three-judge federal district court panel twice ruled that the map likely violated Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act by diluting Black voting power, and it ordered the state to create a second majority-Black district or something close to it. The state appealed to the Supreme Court, arguing that the lower court had overstepped its authority.
Left-leaning sources emphasized the impact on Black voters. NBC News reported that the decision “sends litigation back to a lower court as the state races to adopt a congressional map that would eliminate a majority-Black district and more heavily favor Republicans.” CBS News noted that the Supreme Court “set aside lower court decisions that had blocked the state from using a congressional map drawn by Republicans in 2023 that contained one majority-Black district.” These outlets highlighted concerns from voting rights advocates that the map undermines the ability of Black Alabamians to elect candidates of their choice, and they pointed to the lower court’s finding that the map likely violated federal law.
Right-leaning coverage, from the Daily Caller, framed the ruling as consistent with the Supreme Court’s recent handling of a similar case. The outlet stated, “The ruling follows the Court’s decision in the case involving Louisiana,” referencing a separate dispute where the justices allowed a map with only one majority-Black district to be used while litigation continued. This perspective underscored the state’s position that the lower court had improperly required a race-based redistricting remedy and that the Supreme Court’s intervention was necessary to restore the legislature’s authority over map-drawing.
Current status: The Supreme Court’s order did not resolve the merits of the case but instead lifted the lower court’s injunction, allowing Alabama to proceed with the challenged map for upcoming elections. The litigation now returns to the district court for further proceedings. The state is expected to finalize the map quickly to meet election deadlines, while opponents continue to argue that it violates the Voting Rights Act.
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