Federal Court Strikes Down Alabama Voting Map, Orders Special Master - Articles

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Federal Court Strikes Down Alabama Voting Map, Orders Special Master

Posted by: Paul Burch on Sep 5, 2023

A panel of three federal judges ruled today that Alabama's Republican-drawn congressional map illegally dilutes the voting power of Black residents and ignored a court order to adhere to the Voting Rights Act, reports Reuters. The ruling is the second time the court has thrown out a congressional plan enacted by the Republican-controlled Alabama state legislature. A court-appointed special master and cartographer will oversee a new map ahead of next year's election. The judges noted in their ruling they were "deeply troubled that the State enacted a map that the State readily admits does not provide the remedy we said federal law requires." More than one-quarter of Alabama's residents are Black. At a special session in July, Alabama lawmakers declined to create a second majority-Black congressional district. In related news, on Saturday, the Hill reported that a Florida judge ruled that a congressional map authorized by Gov. Ron DeSantis violated the state constitution’s Fair Districts Amendment by "dismantling a congressional district that enabled Black voters to elect their candidates of choice under the previous plan.”