USA Redistricting in Alabama: Defeat for Republicans
A federal court in Alabama has temporarily blocked the redrawing of electoral districts in the US state. In doing so, the Republicans failed in their attempt to reintroduce an electoral district plan from 2023 which, according to the judges, discriminates against black voters. Accordingly, the court provisionally prohibited Republican-ruled Alabama from "conducting the 2026 congressional elections in accordance with the 2023 plan", according to the court file.
26.05.2026, 21:48
SDA
The case has already been heard several times by courts in the USA. The current order is a temporary injunction. It is a defeat, at least in the short term, for the Republicans in the southern state. Alabama has already appealed against the injunction.
Parties use gerrymandering to gain an advantage
The background to the redrawing of constituencies - known as gerrymandering - is that constituencies have to be redrawn every ten years so that they each have a similar number of inhabitants. In practice, however, parties often use this process to gain an advantage: for example, areas from one constituency with a clear majority can be moved to another constituency where the race is closer.
In the case of Alabama, the judges took the view that the Republicans' claimed constituency plan was to distribute the votes of black voters across the constituencies in such a way as to dilute them.
Short-term defeat for the Republicans
US courts in many states are dealing with such cases. There will be general elections in the USA on November 3: The House of Representatives will be completely re-elected, as well as part of the Senate. In these mid-term elections, every single seat could be decisive. Under pressure from US President Donald Trump, his party colleagues in the states are in the process of redrawing the lines in favor of the Republicans. In Texas, Florida, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Alabama, North Carolina and Ohio there were new constituencies or plans to do so. The Democrats followed suit in California and Virginia, for example, but are currently in a worse position.
The midterms are seen as a test of the mood for Trump's policies: if the Republicans lose their currently very narrow majority in even just one of the two chambers of parliament in the midterm elections, Trump will no longer be able to push through any major legislative initiatives.
