Alabama asks Supreme Court to allow use of congressional map helping GOP, despite racial bias ruling

Alabama has launched another high-stakes challenge to federal judicial authority, filing an emergency application with the Supreme Court seeking permission to use its own Republican-favored congressional map for the upcoming 2026 elections. This move directly defies a federal three-judge panel recent finding that the state's proposed map intentionally discriminates against Black voters, escalating a legal battle that ostensibly concluded with the High Court's own landmark 2023 ruling in Allen v. Milligan. This latest gambit is an audacious attempt by the Alabama State Legislature to circumvent the spirit of the Voting Rights Act and reassert control over districting. Following the Supreme Court's mandate in Allen v. Milligan for a second Black opportunity district, the lower federal panel repeatedly rejected Alabama's subsequent proposals, deeming them insufficient and ultimately commissioning an independent special master to draw remedial map. The state's current appeal now asks SCOTUS to bless a plan that federal courts have twice ruled as diluting minority voting power, setting a precarious precedent for VRA enforcement nationwide. The Supreme Court faces a tight window to consider Alabama's application, with candidate qualifying for the 2026 Elections rapidly approaching. A decision either way will dramatically reshape Alabama's electoral landscape, potentially altering the balance of power in the U.S. House of Representatives and signaling the judiciary's willingness to enforce or relax protections against Racial Gerrymandering. All eyes are on Washington as this pivotal moment unfolds.