Oct 8, 2024 Story by: Editor
The state of Alabama is gearing up for a federal trial on November 12, concerning the Senate district maps redrawn by the Legislature in 2021. The lawsuit argues that the Senate districts in Montgomery and Huntsville dilute Black voting power, which would be a violation of Section 2 of the 1965 Voting Rights Act.
“We’ll prove at trial that the 2021 plan that the Legislature adopted for the Senate map does, in fact, dilute Black votes in those two areas,” said Jess Unger, senior staff attorney at the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), one of the plaintiffs involved, speaking to Alabama Daily News.
Initially, the lawsuit alleged that nearly 25% of Alabama Senate and House districts had been racially gerrymandered following the 2020 census redistricting. However, by the end of last year, the scope of the case was narrowed down.
On the defense side, Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall’s office expressed confidence. “The defense will establish with an abundance of evidence that Alabama’s political processes are equally open to all voters, regardless of race,” the office said in a statement to Alabama Daily News.
The legal dispute now zeroes in on districts 25 and 26 in Montgomery County, as well as districts 2, 7, and 8 in Madison County. These districts are represented by Sen. Kirk Hatcher (D-Montgomery), Sen. Will Barfoot (R-Pike Road), and Republican Senators Tom Butler, Sam Givhan, and Steve Livingston in Madison County.
“We believe that the maps we passed fully comply with the Voting Rights Act and the Constitution of the United States,” Senate President Pro Tem Greg Reed (R-Jasper) stated, defending the Legislature’s actions. He added that the state would continue fighting any attempts by “special interest groups” to influence elections through the courts.
The lawsuit, filed by voters from Tuscaloosa and Montgomery, includes plaintiffs such as Greater Birmingham Ministries, the Alabama NAACP, the ACLU of Alabama, and the SPLC. The case bears resemblance to another legal challenge involving the state’s congressional districts, which led to a court-ordered redrawing to ensure Black voters had a second district where they could elect their preferred candidates.
Highlighting the importance of the lawsuit, Jess Unger noted, “A lot of extraordinarily consequential decisions are made in the Alabama Legislature… It can be just as harmful for Black voters if the Senate map, which translates Alabamians’ votes into seats in the state Senate, is drawn in a manner that dilutes Black votes.”
If successful, the lawsuit would lead to the creation of two additional Senate districts where Black voters could elect candidates of their choice. Currently, Republicans hold a supermajority in both the Alabama Senate and House, with lawmakers up for reelection in 2026. Campaign fundraising will begin in May 2025. Source: Alabama Daily News
