Supreme Court clears way for new Alabama election map
The Supreme Court’s 6-3 ruling clears the way for Alabama to implement a new congressional map, giving Republicans a significant advantage, reports. Karl Rove, former White House Deputy Chief of Staff, details the controversial second district map’s design. John Yoo, a UC Berkeley Law Professor, then addresses Justice Sotomayor’s dissent, which argues the map violates the 14th Amendment by diluting Black voters’ power.
NEWYou can now listen to articles!
The Supreme Court on Tuesday gave Alabama Republicans a victory, issuing an emergency order that the state can use a congressional map likely to benefit the GOP in November’s midterm elections.
The justices granted Alabama’s emergency appeal to use a map adopted by the state legislature in 2023 that includes a single majority-Black district for this election cycle. The court’s three liberal justices dissented.
Alabama Republicans had sought to revive the previously blocked map, which is expected to give the GOP an opportunity to gain an additional congressional seat by replacing a court-drawn south Alabama district that helped elect a Black Democrat with a map that contains only one majority-Black district.
The ruling came after the Supreme Court last month vacated a lower court ruling blocking Alabama’s 2023 congressional map and sent the case back for further review. Last week, however, a three-judge federal panel again blocked the GOP-backed map and ordered Alabama to continue using a court-drawn map containing two districts in which Black voters are a majority or have an opportunity to elect their preferred candidates.
REDISTRICTING WAR INTENSIFIES AS GOP SUFFERS SETBACKS IN TWO STATES
Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey participates in the homecoming ceremonies at halftime of the game between South Alabama Jaguars and Auburn Tigers at Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn, Ala., on Sept. 13, 2025. (Stew Milne/Getty Images)
Republican Gov. Kay Ivey celebrated the ruling Tuesday evening and confirmed that Alabama’s Aug. 11 special primary election would be conducted under the 2023 map.
“The U.S. Supreme Court confirmed what I have said all along and that is that Alabama knows our state, our people and our districts best,” Ivey said in a statement.
“Today’s decision is a win for the people of Alabama and our elections,” she continued. “Alabama is doing our part to keep America strong, and I am proud our state continues to fight the fight to ensure activists do not get the final say.”
REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK: DEMOCRATS SAY THEY CAN STILL FLIP THE HOUSE DESPITE GOP REDISTRICTING GAINS IN THE SOUTH
President Donald Trump arrives to deliver remarks at the National Memorial Day Observance at the Memorial Amphitheatre in Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va., on May 26, 2025. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)
“I will see y’all at the polls August 11!” Ivey added.
The redistricting fight comes as President Donald Trump has encouraged Republican-led states to redraw congressional maps following the Supreme Court’s Callais decision, which limited the use of race in congressional redistricting. Alabama argued that the lower court’s remedial map improperly elevated race over traditional districting principles, while voting-rights groups argued that the state’s map diluted Black voting power.
In an unsigned majority opinion, the court wrote: “The State has also made a strong showing of irreparable harm and that the equities and public interest favor it.”
SUPREME COURT JUST GAVE BLACK VOTERS A SHOT AT REAL POWER BEYOND SAFE SEATS
Justices of the U.S. Supreme Court pose for their official photo at the Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 7, 2022. (OLIVIER DOULIERY/AFP via Getty Images)
“We have repeatedly cautioned that lower federal courts should not “alter the election rules on the eve of an election,” the majority added.
In a dissenting opinion, Justice Sonia Sotomayor argued that the map discriminates against Black Alabamians.
“Before the Court are two paths,” Sotomayor wrote. “Down one lies an orderly election, held under a tried-and-tested congressional map that protects Black Alabamians’ right to vote and with which all voters, elections officials, and candidates alike are familiar.”
SUPREME COURT RULES ON KEY VOTING RIGHTS ACT RULE AS REPUBLICANS AND DEMOCRATS WAGE REDISTRICTING WAR
Supreme Court Associate Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas wait to leave the stage after the inauguration ceremonies in the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 20, 2025. (Chip Somodevilla/AFP via Getty Images)
“Down the other lies a chaotic election, held under a never-before-used congressional map that intentionally discriminates against Black Alabamians, that Alabama adopted in unashamed defiance of a prior court order directly affirmed by this Court, and that will require officials to change the voter registrations of hundreds of thousands of voters in just days at best, a task that Alabama previously represented would take months,” she continued.
“The majority chooses the second path and disregards both democratic values and the rule of law.” she added.
The ACLU also criticized the ruling, arguing it permits Alabama to use a racially discriminatory map.
“Today’s ruling delays relief for voters who have already spent years fighting for an equal opportunity to elect candidates of their choice and to have their voices heard,” Davin Rosborough, deputy director of the ACLU’s Voting Rights Project, said in a statement.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE APP
“We remain committed to pursuing equal opportunities in Congress for our clients and Black Alabamians,” he added. “We will fight for those rights even in the face of those who continue to move the goalposts and undo our nation’s progress in realizing its promise as a multi-racial democracy.”
Digital’s Adam Pack and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
