By Anietie anii-bassey
Republican lawmakers across the South moved aggressively Friday to redraw congressional districts ahead of this year’s midterm elections, escalating a nationwide political and legal fight over voting power and control of the U.S. House of Representatives.
In Alabama, lawmakers approved legislation that could trigger entirely new congressional primaries if courts permit the state to abandon its current court-ordered congressional map and adopt Republican-backed districts instead. The measure now heads to Republican Gov. Kay Ivey for consideration.
The push in Alabama came amid a dramatic day in the national redistricting battle. Earlier Friday, the Virginia Supreme Court struck down a Democratic-backed congressional map that could have helped Democrats gain as many as four additional House seats.
At the same time, lawmakers in Louisiana and South Carolina advanced Republican-led proposals that critics say would weaken Black voting power and solidify GOP control in the South.
The rapid developments underscore how both parties are intensifying efforts to gain an advantage in the closely divided House before voters head to the polls in November. Republicans, emboldened by a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision that weakened parts of the Voting Rights Act, are pressing ahead with new maps in multiple states despite mounting protests and expected legal challenges.
The battle over congressional lines has become one of the most consequential political struggles of the election cycle, with both parties viewing redistricting as a key path to shaping the balance of power in Washington for years to come.
The latest wave of redistricting efforts accelerated after President Donald Trump encouraged Republican officials in Texas last year to redraw congressional boundaries in hopes of securing additional GOP seats. Since then, Republican strategists have estimated they could potentially gain as many as 14 House seats through new district maps across several states.
Democrats believe they could offset some of those gains and possibly add up to six seats of their own, though analysts caution that aggressive partisan gerrymandering can sometimes create unexpectedly competitive districts.
In Alabama, emotions ran high both inside and outside the Statehouse as lawmakers debated legislation that could reopen congressional primaries under newly drawn districts if federal courts allow the state to replace its current map.
Outside the building, demonstrators chanted “fight for democracy” and “down with white supremacy” as civil rights activists warned that the legislation threatened decades of progress in minority representation.
Among the protesters was veteran civil rights activist Betty White Boynton, who reflected on the historical significance of the moment.
“I was out there in 1965 marching for the right to vote, and now we are back here in 2026 doing the same thing,” Boynton said.
The proposed legislation would effectively nullify results from the May 19 congressional primaries in certain districts if courts lift an existing injunction that currently blocks Alabama from using a Republican-crafted congressional map passed in 2023.
Republican Sen. Greg Albritton defended the proposal, insisting the legislation would only take effect if federal courts permit the state to move away from the existing court-ordered map.
“Should there be no court order issued, then this bill would have no effect,” Albritton told lawmakers during floor debate.
The current congressional map was imposed after federal courts concluded Alabama’s earlier Republican-drawn districts likely violated the Voting Rights Act by failing to create sufficient opportunities for Black voters to elect candidates of their choice.
The court-ordered map resulted in the creation of a second district where Black voters either form a majority or are close to one, helping Democrat Shomari Figures win election to Congress in 2024. Republicans now hope to restore the previously rejected map, which could significantly improve GOP chances of reclaiming the district.
Black lawmakers and civil rights advocates fiercely condemned the legislation, arguing it represents an effort to dilute Black political representation for partisan gain.
Senate Minority Leader Bobby Singleton, a Black Democrat, accused Republicans of trying to silence minority voters to secure another Republican seat in Congress.
“We have just only been voting since 1965, and you are now trying to take that voice away from us,” Singleton said during debate.
The redistricting fight in Alabama unfolded against the backdrop of the Virginia Supreme Court’s decision earlier Friday to invalidate a Democratic-backed congressional map on procedural grounds.
Democrats had hoped the Virginia plan would help the party capture as many as four additional House seats in a state where Republicans currently hold a narrow edge in congressional representation.
But the court ruled that Democratic lawmakers failed to comply with constitutional requirements when placing the amendment authorizing the map before voters.
Under Virginia’s constitution, lawmakers must approve a constitutional amendment during two separate legislative sessions with a statewide election occurring in between. The legal dispute centered on the timing of the legislature’s first approval, which took place while early voting was already underway.
The court ruled that lawmakers acted too late because more than 1.3 million Virginians had already cast ballots by the time the amendment was initially approved.
The ruling represented another significant victory for Republicans in the broader redistricting war and further complicated Democratic efforts to offset GOP advantages elsewhere in the country.
In Louisiana, lawmakers also moved forward Friday with congressional maps that drew sharp criticism from Democrats and civil rights groups.
A Senate committee reviewed several proposals introduced by Republican state Sen. John “Jay” Morris that would either eliminate one or both of Louisiana’s existing majority-Black congressional districts.
Democratic state Sen. Sam Jenkins warned the proposals would weaken Black political influence throughout the state.
“Every one of these maps reduces Black voting power in every one of the districts,” Jenkins said. “And I think that’s a problem.”
Morris rejected accusations of racial discrimination, saying his goal was to preserve traditional district boundaries rather than draw maps based on race.
“I don’t think we should care that much about race,” Morris told the committee.
The hearing featured emotional testimony from civil rights advocates and Black leaders who urged lawmakers not to dismantle districts that have given Black voters greater representation in Congress.
The four Black members of Congress who have represented Louisiana since the Reconstruction era appealed directly to lawmakers to preserve two majority-Black districts in a state where Black residents make up roughly one-third of the electorate.
Among those speaking was Leona Tate, one of the first Black children to integrate New Orleans public schools during the civil rights movement.
Tate, now 71, told lawmakers that reducing Black political representation would reverse decades of hard-fought progress.
“You have a choice in front of you,” she said. “You can draw a map that reflects what Louisiana actually is — a state where Black voices belong in the halls of Congress. Or you can draw a map that tells my grandchildren that their votes don’t count.”
South Carolina lawmakers also entered the redistricting battle Friday during a rare legislative hearing focused on a proposal that could help Republicans capture all seven of the state’s congressional seats.
The proposal would significantly alter the district represented by Democratic Rep. Jim Clyburn, one of the most influential Black lawmakers in Congress.
The hearing exposed divisions even among Republicans, some of whom expressed concern that weakening the Democratic-leaning district could inadvertently make neighboring Republican districts more competitive.
The subcommittee heard hours of testimony overwhelmingly opposing the proposal. A consultant reviewing the plan argued it likely complied with the Supreme Court’s recent ruling in the Louisiana voting rights case.
Democratic state Rep. Justin Bamberg acknowledged lawmakers may have the legal authority to redraw the districts but questioned whether doing so was morally justified.
“I agree if the law allows us to do it, then we can do it,” Bamberg said. “But I can slap somebody’s mama and it’s not the right thing to do.”
Complicating matters further, absentee ballots for South Carolina’s June 9 congressional primaries have already been distributed and returned by some voters. Lawmakers are now considering delaying congressional primaries until August and reopening candidate filing if new maps are approved.
Meanwhile, Tennessee Democrats filed suit Friday seeking to block newly enacted congressional districts that dismantle a Democratic-held majority-Black district in Memphis. Republicans in Tennessee approved the new map Thursday, and Democrats argue the rapid changes so close to the election risk disenfranchising voters and creating widespread confusion.
The legal and political clashes unfolding across the South are expected to continue for months as courts, legislatures and election officials wrestle with rapidly changing district boundaries in the middle of an already volatile election season.
With control of the House hanging on a razor-thin margin, both parties increasingly view congressional mapmaking not simply as a procedural matter, but as a decisive weapon in the battle for political power in Washington.
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