Court Rejects Alabama House Map, Calling It Unfair to Black Voters
The New York Times • • general
Key Points:
- A federal judges panel rejected Alabama's new voting map for the November midterm elections, ruling that the districts discriminated against Black voters and should not be used so close to the vote.
- Alabama Governor Kay Ivey, a Republican, has scheduled special primaries in August for four House districts affected by the proposed new map, but the state is expected to appeal the ruling.
- The decision adds complexity to the electoral process in the South, where Republican-led legislatures have been redrawing district lines following the Supreme Court's weakening of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
- The judges emphasized that using a districting plan marked by intentional race-based discrimination would be inappropriate and warned against voter confusion from implementing a new map before the elections.
- The ruling highlights ongoing challenges in how lower courts interpret the Voting Rights Act after recent changes by the Supreme Court.