Eric Holder Statement on VRA Plaintiffs’ Challenge to Alabama Congressional Map

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Eric Holder Statement on VRA Plaintiffs’ Challenge to Alabama Congressional Map

The map includes just 1 Black opportunity district, defying court order

Washington, D.C. – Today, plaintiffs supported by the National Redistricting Foundation (NRF) in Allen v. Milligan, filed an objection to the Alabama Legislature’s proposed remedial congressional map. The map contains 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 new map includes just one Black opportunity district, with a second congressional district that 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. 

Eric H. Holder, Jr., the 82nd Attorney General of the United States, released the following statement: 

“The Alabama Legislature’s enacted map is an obvious gerrymander, passed in brazen defiance of both the Alabama district court’s order and the United States Supreme Court’s decision. Republicans, both in Alabama and at the national level, made it abundantly clear throughout the redraw process that they were not interested in passing a map that would comply with the law and allow Black voters to elect a candidate of their choice in two districts, as ordered. Instead, their goal was a map that prioritized their state partisan needs and national political objectives. The result is a shameful display that would have made George Wallace—another Alabama governor who defied the courts—proud.  

“The need for a legally compliant and fair map has been clear throughout this unnecessarily drawn out process. But with the legislature showing no willingness to voluntarily comply and with the governor’s defiance, the district court should reject this map, and give the people of Alabama the fairness and equality they clearly deserve.” 

ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND:

The NRF, the 501(c)(3) affiliate of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee (NDRC), supports the map developed by the plaintiff groups who succeeded on the Section 2 claim at issue in this case, what 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. And it does this while making minimal changes to the state’s current map. More information about the VRA Plaintiffs’ Remedial Plan can be found here.   

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