Judges’ Alabama Map Freeze Could Set Up Another Supreme Court Showdown
The ongoing battle over Alabama’s congressional redistricting is poised to return to the U.S. Supreme Court. A federal court in Alabama has temporarily halted the Republican Party’s plan to redraw the state’s map. This move might provoke yet another decision from the nation’s highest court.
The case has been contentious with Black voters’ representatives challenging the plans. The proposed changes could allow a Republican candidate to claim a U.S. House seat currently held by a Democrat in the upcoming midterms. This echoes efforts supported nationwide by former President Donald Trump.
On Tuesday, a three-judge panel issued a preliminary injunction. Alabama could contest the decision at the Supreme Court. Similar disputes have previously been ruled upon, including one in Texas.
Newsweek sought comments from Alabama Secretary of State Wes Allen and the plaintiffs’ attorneys via email.
Alabama Redistricting Injunction: What To Know
The court decreed that Alabama should employ the court-ordered districts from the 2024 election. This decision follows arguments from attorneys representing Black voters, who claimed the state’s proposed map was discriminatory.
A similar ruling emerged from the same panel in 2023. That case, originating in 2021, contended that the map breached Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act by concentrating Black voters in a single district. The plaintiffs aimed to establish a second district where Black voters could elect their preferred candidate.
Federal courts have repeatedly sided with the plaintiffs on this issue.
In 2022, a three-judge panel acknowledged the likelihood of the plaintiffs’ success. Alabama was instructed to redraw its map to include another majority-Black district. The Supreme Court confirmed this in a significant 5–4 ruling in 2023 (Allen v. Milligan), maintaining the protections against racial vote dilution under the Voting Rights Act.
Nonetheless, Alabama’s legislature created a replacement map in 2023 with only one majority-Black district, sparking renewed litigation. A federal court blocked this plan too and applied its own map comprising two Black opportunity districts for the 2024 elections. A full trial in 2025 concluded that the state’s map violated both the Voting Rights Act and exhibited intentional racial bias.
The current phase of the case resumes ahead of the 2026 midterms. On May 11, 2026, the Supreme Court intervened yet again. It did not make a judgment on the merits but nullified the lower court’s 2025 decision. The case was referred back for reevaluation, considering a separate ruling in Louisiana v. Callais, which altered the interpretation of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act.