Federal Judge Orders Georgia to Redraw Racially Discriminatory Congressional, State Senate and House Districts

Judge anticipates appeals but holds firm on December 8 deadline for new map, potentially shifting congressional control and narrowing Republican majorities in Georgia's state House and Senate.

A federal judge ruled that some of Georgia’s congressional, state Senate and state House districts were drafted in a racially discriminatory manner, thereby ordering the state to create one more Black-majority congressional district, two new Black-majority districts in the 56-member state Senate and five new Black-majority districts in the 180-member state House.
The judge's decision could shift one of Georgia's 14 congressional seats from Republican to Democratic control. This is due to the GOP drawing the congressional map in such a way that turned an 8-6 Republican majority to the 9-5 Republican majority in 2021.
The judge also set a Dec. 8 deadline for the redrawing of the map. If the state fails to take action, the judge has the power to redraw the districts himself.
This decision is part of a larger wave of litigation after the U.S. Supreme Court maintained its interpretation of the Voting Rights Act earlier this year. Courts in Alabama and Florida ruled recently that Republican-led legislatures had unfairly diluted the voting power of Black citizens.
Despite the fact that all of the state's population increase between 2010 and 2020 was attributable to growth among non-white populations, the number of congressional and state Senate districts with a Black majority remained the same. This detail informed a key contention of the plaintiffs.