Alabama lawmakers refuse to create 2nd majority-Black congressional district [possibly defying Supreme Court order] - Associated Press
Alabama on Friday refused to create a second majority-Black congressional district, a move that could defy a recent order from the U.S. Supreme Court to give minority voters a greater voice and trigger a renewed battle over the state’s political map.
Lawmakers in the Republican-dominated House and Senate instead passed a plan that would increase the percentage of Black voters from about 31% to 40% in the state’s 2nd District. The map was a compromise between plans that had percentages of 42% and 38% for the southeast Alabama district. GOP Gov. Kay Ivey quickly signed it.
State lawmakers faced a deadline to adopt new district lines after the Supreme Court in June upheld a three-judge panel’s finding] that the current state map — with one majority-Black district out of seven in a state that is 27% Black — likely violates the federal Voting Rights Act.
Voting rights advocates and Black lawmakers said the plan invoked the state’s Jim Crow history of treating Black voters unfairly.
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Republicans argued that their proposal complies with the directive to create a second district where Black voters could influence the outcome of congressional elections. Opponents said it flouted a directive from the panel to create a second majority-Black district or “something quite close to it” so that Black voters “have an opportunity to elect a representative of their choice.”
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An analysis by The Associated Press, using redistricting software, shows that the 2nd District proposed Friday has mostly voted for Republicans in recent statewide elections. Donald Trump won the district by nearly 10 percentage points in his 2020 reelection bid.
Experts have said the GOP proposals fall short of what the Supreme Court said last month is required.
Associated Press
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