SCOTUS clears way for Alabama’s redrawn congressional map

The Supreme Court on Tuesday cleared the way for Alabama to use Republicans’ redrawn congressional map in this year’s elections. In a divided 6-3 decision, the high court blocked a lower court ruling that said the redistricting plan intentionally discriminated against black people. The justices said the lower court wrongly interposed by blocking a map selected by the state representatives. The Supreme Court granted an emergency appeal in an unsigned opinion.

A special primary for the districts affected by the decision is set for Aug. 11, according to Alabama Governor Kay Ivey. She described the court’s decision as a win for the people of Alabama.

What’s led to Tuesday’s ruling? Republicans drew the map three years ago, saying it helped keep the Gulf Coast region together in one congressional district. But opponents sued, contending the map contained only one majority-black population out of the seven congressional districts. A 2024 court-selected map included two majority-black districts. The Supreme Court found that Alabama was likely to prevail on its argument that the 2023 map was lawful.

The court’s ruling allows Alabama to openly discriminate against black voters, said Deuel Ross, director of litigation for the Legal Defense Fund. The organization, along with the American Civil Liberties Union, will continue to fight against the 2023 map, he said.

What did the dissenting justices say? Justice Sonia Sotomayor, joined by Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson, said the Supreme Court’s decision caused chaos in Alabama’s electoral process. She said the ruling was wrong on the merits and harmed the public.

Dig deeper: Read Elizabeth Black’s report on the lower court ruling that blocked the map last week.