Eric Holder Applauds Federal Court’s Rejection of Alabama’s Gerrymandered Congressional Map

For Immediate Release
September 5, 2023
Contact
Jena Doyle
doyle@redistrictingfoundation.org

Eric Holder Applauds Federal Court’s Rejection of Alabama’s Gerrymandered Congressional Map

Washington, D.C. – Today, a three-judge federal district panel ruled that the Alabama legislature’s latest congressional map is an improper remedy in accordance with its order in the case Caster v. Allen. The National Redistricting Foundation (NRF), the 501(c)(3) affiliate of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, is continuing to provide financial support and direct the litigation strategy for the Caster plaintiffs in this case. 

“This is a significant step toward equal representation for Black Alabamians,” said Eric H. Holder, Jr., the 82nd Attorney General of the United States. “The court rightly stepped up and applied the law in order to protect the rights of American citizens in the face of the state’s blatant attempt to diminish those rights in defiance of both this court and the Supreme Court of the United States. What happened in Alabama this summer underscores the necessity for the judiciary to continue to be unwavering in its obligations to enforce the critical protections of the Voting Rights Act in order for justice to ultimately prevail. Other states with pending Section 2 cases should take note and adhere to the Supreme Court’s decision.”

ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND:

In its Allen v. Milligan decision, the Supreme Court of the United States affirmed a district court order that stated the following: “As the Legislature considers such plans, it should be mindful of the practical reality, based on the ample evidence of intensely racially polarized voting adduced during the preliminary injunction proceedings, that any remedial plan will need to include two districts in which Black voters either comprise a voting-age majority or something quite close to it.”

The Alabama Legislature drew a map that includes just one Black opportunity district, despite the fact that the Supreme Court of the United States upheld the lower court’s decision that in Alabama such a map is a violation of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act (VRA). The second congressional district has a Black Voting Age Population (BVAP) of only 39.93 percent—an amount that falls far short of what is necessary and required to allow Black voters in Alabama an equal opportunity to elect candidates of their choice pursuant to Section 2 of the VRA.

The NRF supports the map developed by the plaintiff groups who succeeded on the Section 2 claim at issue in this case. The map was introduced during the 2023 special session and is officially titled “VRA Plaintiffs’ Remedial Plan.” The VRA Plaintiffs’ Remedial Plan provides fair and legally compliant representation to voters by including two congressional districts that have a Black Voting Age Population (BVAP) of above 50 percent, which is necessary for these districts to effectively provide an equal opportunity for Black voters in Alabama to elect their candidates of choice as required by the VRA. More information about the VRA Plaintiffs’ Remedial Plan can be found here.   

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