Supreme Court gives green light to Republican-backed electoral map in Alabama and overturns lower court ruling

The Supreme Court on Monday allowed Alabama to move forward with a congressional map that includes only one majority African-American district, handing the state a major legal victory after state officials filed an emergency petition with the court last Friday to reverse a lower court ruling that had blocked use of the map approved by lawmakers in 2023. The justices issued their order without offering any explanation, effectively overturning the lower court's decision and remanding the case for further review.

The ruling represents another high-profile Supreme Court intervention in a growing series of redistricting disputes, as both Republicans and Democrats seek electoral advantage ahead of November's midterm elections. In recent months, the court has weighed in on congressional maps in California, Alabama, Texas and Louisiana.

Rejection by Democratic judges

While several media outlets noted that the court's conservative majority backed the decision, the Supreme Court did not disclose how each justice voted, and the order was issued just minutes after those who opposed it filed their final brief. Leftist Justice Sonia Sotomayor, in a dissenting vote backed by the court's two other Democratic members, called the decision "inappropriate" and warned that it "will only cause confusion when Alabamians begin voting in next week's scheduled elections." She also argued that the conservative majority "unceremoniously dismisses" the lower court's conclusion that Alabama deliberately engaged in discrimination in drawing the map, doing so "without regard for the confusion that is sure to follow."

The legal battle over redistricting in Alabama had previously reached the Supreme Court, after the justices rejected in 2023 an earlier map drawn by the state that contained only one district where Black voters could elect their preferred candidate, ordering lawmakers to submit a new version.

The decision comes as several Southern states move rapidly to redraw their congressional districts following last month's Supreme Court ruling, which further limited the protections of the Voting Rights Act, according to several Democratic leaders.