Alabama

On June 2, a 6-3 Supreme Court granted Alabama's emergency request to use its 2023 congressional map for the 2026 election — the map that eliminates one of the state's two majority-Black districts. The unsigned order overrides a May 26 three-judge panel that had ruled, for a second time, that the map intentionally discriminated against Black voters in violation of the 14th Amendment. In dissent, joined by Justices Kagan and Jackson, Justice Sotomayor said the majority forced a “chaotic election … under a never-before-used congressional map that intentionally discriminates against Black Alabamians.” What it means for November 3: Alabama held special primaries in Districts 1, 2, 6 and 7 on Aug 11 under the 2023 lines. In the redrawn AL-02, where Black voting-age population falls from about 48% to 40%, Rep. Shomari Figures (D) faces state Rep. Rhett Marques (R), who won the GOP nomination outright with 50.03%. Rep. Terri Sewell's AL-07 remains, and she was unopposed in her primary. The 11th Circuit also let Alabama use its 2021 state Senate map, voiding May 19 results in Montgomery-area Senate Districts 25 and 26. The Milligan appeal is still pending at the Supreme Court. For now, organizing means turning out Black voters from the Wiregrass to Montgomery and Lowndes County inside lines drawn to dilute them.