The U.S. Supreme Court has paved the way for Alabama to adopt a new congressional map, which could leave the state with one majority-Black district. The ruling comes a little more than a week before Alabama’s primary elections on May 19.
The latest decision, known as Allen v. Caster, lifts the court’s block on Alabama’s previous congressional map alongside any changes to the current one until 2030. The court previously ruled in 2023 that the state’s 2021 map was racially discriminatory under the Voting Rights Act and ordered Alabama to add a second Black-majority district.
Since the Supreme Court vacated its ruling and sent the case back to the lower courts for further action, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama will decide whether the 2021 map violates the Voting Rights Act .
The decision comes weeks after the Supreme Court decided Louisiana v. Callais, which ruled that Louisiana’s 2024 congressional map was “illegal racial gerrymandering.” Louisiana’s map had been redrawn to create a second majority-Black district after a lower court ruled that the original map violated the Voting Rights Act.
The court’s majority opinion added that a district map must be intentionally discriminatory in order to violate the Voting Rights Act, which means that intent must be proven.
Gov. Kay Ivey signed a law Friday allowing the state to null the primary election on May 19 for certain districts and conduct a new primary if the courts allow the state to use new districts in the election. The new primary date would be decided by Ivey.
Alabama legislators have faced pushback from civil rights groups during the redrawing of their congressional maps, with some protesters arguing that changing the state Senate and congressional maps is “unconstitutional” and violates the Voting Rights Act.
The proposed map would eliminate one of the two majority-Black districts in Alabama, which is currently held by Shomari Figures, a Black Democrat.
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Amanda Machamer, junior in journalism, has been with The Auburn Plainsman since Spring 2025. Machamer previously served as a News Writer, Assistant News Editor and Assistant Content Editor. She is currently serving as the Editor-in-Chief.
