A federal court blocked a newly drawn Alabama congressional map on Tuesday because it did not comply with a Supreme Court order from earlier this year to create two majority-Black districts. The three judges on the panel wrote in their unanimous decision that they were “deeply troubled” by Alabama lawmakers’ actions in the case. “The law requires the creation of an additional district that affords Black Alabamians, like everyone else, a fair and reasonable opportunity to elect candidates of their choice,” the judges wrote. “The 2023 plan plainly fails to do so.” The panel will have an independent court-appointed special master to submit three new potential maps for the 2024 election, according to the Associated Press. The order takes redistricting out of the hands of the Republican-led Alabama Legislature, which submitted its revised map after the surprise 5-4 Supreme Court ruling in June. A court filing by the state indicates it plans to ask the high court to put the special master order on hold while it appeals the panel’s decision.
