A federal court has ruled that Alabama’s Republican-led legislature intentionally discriminated against Black voters with its 2023 electoral map, which maintained only one majority-Black congressional district. In a 571-page ruling, a three-judge panel sharply criticized lawmakers for essentially replicating a map from 2021 that had already been found to undermine the voting power of Black Alabamians, violating the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
Despite a prior court order requiring the state to create a new map that would include at least two districts with majority-Black populations, the legislature instead passed a map that continued to limit Black voters’ influence, the court said. The panel described the legislature’s actions as a strategic move to bypass the injunction issued against the original map, labeling it a blatant disregard of federal law.
The court’s ruling blocks the newly drawn map from being used in future elections. Previously, Alabama had been ordered to use a court-approved map that included two Black-majority districts for the 2024 elections, enabling voters to elect two Black representatives for the first time in state history—Democrats Terri Sewell and Shomari Figures.
The ruling was a victory for those advocating for voting rights, reaffirming the need to protect the political power of Black Alabamians. Lawyers representing the plaintiffs hailed the decision as an important step in ensuring fair representation for historically marginalized communities. Meanwhile, the state’s Attorney General has stated that his office is reviewing its options in response to the ruling.
