Alabama asks Supreme Court to intervene in congressional map dispute.
Alabama Leaders Take Congressional Redistricting Fight to Supreme Court
Leaders in Alabama are determined to fight for their state’s congressional redistricting, even taking the battle to the Supreme Court. This comes just hours after a federal court invalidated the latest map, citing a violation of the Voting Rights Act.
Alabama Secretary of State Wes Allen wasted no time and filed an appeal to the Supreme Court, along with a stay on Tuesday’s ruling until the appeal is heard. Court documents state, “Notice is hereby given that Defendant Secretary of State Wes Allen hereby appeals to the Supreme Court of the United States from this Court’s September 5, 2023 Injunction, Opinion, and Order.”
To cover all bases, the state also filed an appeal to the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. However, it is widely expected that the Supreme Court will strike down the map, as a similar map was already invalidated in June.
The newly redrawn map, passed in July, includes only one majority-black district, but it does have a district where 40% of the voting population is black. However, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama ruled that this map was insufficient.
The federal court’s order stated, “We do not take lightly federal intrusion into a process ordinarily reserved for the State Legislature. But we have now said twice that this Voting Rights Act case is not close. And we are deeply troubled that the State enacted a map that the State readily admits does not provide the remedy we said federal law requires.”
The appeals court has also ordered a special master to submit three redrawn maps by September 25 and scheduled a hearing for those who oppose the map on October 3.
Alabama officials are eager to have a solidified congressional map for the 2024 elections by October 1, 2023. They emphasize the need for sufficient time to “reassign voters, print and distribute ballots, and otherwise conduct the forthcoming 2024 primary elections based on the new map.”
Click here to read more from The Washington Examiner.
" Conservative News Daily does not always share or support the views and opinions expressed here; they are just those of the writer."
