The Supreme Court’s conservative majority on Monday cleared the way for Alabama to revert to a congressional map with one majority-Black district in a sudden ruling that drew a dissent from the court’s three liberal justices.
Alabama officials had rushed up to the court late Friday asking it to halt a lower court ruling blocking it from using a map it enacted in 2023 that includes only one majority-Black district out of seven. It did so based on the court’s blockbuster decision in late April dealing with Louisiana’s congressional map that severely weakened the scope of the landmark Voting Rights Act of 1965.
“Today the Supreme Court vindicated the state’s long-held position,” Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall, a Republican, said in a video posted on social media. “Now the power to draw Alabama’s maps goes back to the people’s elected representatives.”
The Supreme Court’s order, which included no explanation, tosses out a lower court decision that blocked the use of the 2023 map. The Supreme Court sent the case back to a lower court for additional review, but given the short runway before the state’s primary election, Alabama seems likely to prevail with its highly contested map.
It was the latest instance of the Supreme Court delving quickly into a major redistricting fight as Republicans and Democrats race to eke an advantage out of their maps ahead of the November midterm election. Over the course of several months, the court has had a hand in maps in Louisiana, Texas, Alabama and California.
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