'We've said since the beginning that we would refuse to let unconstitutional maps be used without a fight.'
"We deserve to be heard in our electoral process, rather than have our votes diluted using a map that purposefully cracks and packs Black communities," said a plaintiff in the case.With the midterm elections just months away, a trio of federal judges late Monday struck down Alabama's newly drawn congressional districts on the grounds that they discriminated against Black voters, forcing state lawmakers to craft new maps.
In its unanimous ruling, the three-judge panel ordered that"any remedial plan" from the Republican-controlled Alabama Legislature must"include two districts in which Black voters either comprise a voting-age majority or something quite close to it." "We've said since the beginning that we would refuse to let unconstitutional maps be used without a fight."
The map that the judges deemed discriminatory contained just one majority-Black district in a state where Black people make up roughly 27% of the population. "Under the totality of the circumstances, including the factors that the Supreme Court has instructed us to consider, Black voters have less opportunity than other Alabamians to elect candidates of their choice to Congress," the judges wrote.to appeal the ruling, a move that could ultimately put the case before the U.S. Supreme Court.
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