Overview

• A three-judge federal panel ruled that Alabama's 2023 congressional map violated the Voting Rights Act and the Fourteenth Amendment by intentionally discriminating against Black voters.
• The Republican-led legislature ignored court orders to create two majority-Black districts, opting instead to pass a map with only one, prompting judicial intervention.
• The court has permanently barred the use of the legislature-drawn map and upheld the court-drawn map used in the 2024 election, which resulted in two Black representatives being elected for the first time in Alabama's history.
• The ruling underscores the state’s history of racially gerrymandered maps and raises the possibility that Alabama may be subjected to federal preclearance for future redistricting under the Voting Rights Act.
• Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall is reviewing the decision, with an appeal expected, potentially prolonging the legal battle over the state’s redistricting process.