Federal Court Rejects Alabama’s Latest Congressional Map, Initiates Remedial Redistricting Process
WASHINGTON – Today, a panel of three federal judges struck down Alabama’s new congressional redistricting map, finding that the map did not comply with the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent ruling in Allen v. Milligan, which held that Alabama’s congressional map must include two districts that allow Black voters to elect their candidate of choice. In the order issued today, the panel directed a court-appointed Special Master and cartographer to immediately begin work on a new remedial map.
Elias Law Group Partner Abha Khanna, who represented the Caster plaintiffs in this case before the U.S. Supreme Court, and before the three-judge panel that ruled in their favor today, released the following statement:
“For months, Alabama has refused to enact a congressional map that complies with Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, in open defiance of a federal court order and the clear instructions of the U.S. Supreme Court. Instead, Alabama passed yet another map that illegally dilutes the voting power of Black citizens. Thankfully, a federal court today rejected Alabama’s desperate and disappointing attempt to deny Black voters an equal opportunity to participate in the political process. We are confident that the Special Master and cartographer appointed by the Court will produce a remedial map with the second majority-minority district required by law. We will continue to fight for fair and legal maps in Alabama, in partnership with the National Redistricting Foundation and our incredible plaintiffs.”
Click HERE to read the entire opinion.
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