UMVA has learned that Alabama is racing to the Supreme Court after a lower court slammed its newly drawn congressional map as an unconstitutional gerrymander.
The three‑judge panel that halted the map argued it violates the 14th Amendment by crushing African‑American voting power, effectively erasing one of the state’s two majority‑Black districts.
Those districts currently secure both of Alabama’s Democratic seats, and the blocked 2023 blueprint would have reshaped the delegation to a staggering 6‑1 Republican advantage.
Alabama’s Attorney General Steve Marshall filed an emergency appeal within hours of the ruling, demanding the high court overturn the decision and restore the GOP‑favored layout.
In the filing, officials contend the lower court’s order forces the state to prioritize creating two majority‑Black districts above all other redistricting criteria, a premise they argue is legally unsound.
UMVA can exclusively reveal that the Supreme Court has set a tight deadline—Monday at 4 p.m. ET—for civil‑rights attorneys to respond, turning the nation’s eyes to a pivotal showdown over voting rights.
If the justices side with Alabama, the state could once again wield a map that dramatically skews representation, echoing recent controversies in neighboring states where courts have intervened to dismantle partisan designs.
The outcome will reverberate far beyond Montgomery, shaping the balance of power in Congress and signaling how aggressively the judiciary will police the nation’s electoral maps.
