Southern Redistricting Fight Expands as Tennessee, Alabama Open Special Sessions

Republican governors in Tennessee and Alabama have called special legislative sessions to redraw congressional maps after a U.S. Supreme Court decision narrowed a key Voting Rights Act protection, opening a new mid-decade front in the battle for control of the U.S. House ahead of the 2026 midterms.

The Details

["Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee scheduled the state's special session to begin Tuesday, citing the need to act quickly ahead of the state's congressional primary on Aug. 6. Candidate qualifying for that election already ended in March. The Tennessee plan centers on the Memphis-based 9th Congressional District, the state's lone Democratic-held U.S. House seat and a majority-Black district currently represented by Rep. Steve Cohen.", "In Alabama, Gov. Kay Ivey called lawmakers back starting Monday to prepare for special congressional primaries if courts allow the state to revert to its previously drawn 2023 map before the November midterms. Alabama is asking courts to lift an injunction that has kept a court-drawn map in place through the 2030 Census. That court-selected map created a second district with a substantial Black electorate and helped elect a second Democrat to the state's House delegation.", "Lee said in a statement that 'we owe it to Tennesseans to ensure our congressional districts accurately reflect the will of Tennessee voters.' Ivey said she was calling the session 'to ensure Alabama is prepared should the courts act quickly enough to allow Alabama's previously drawn congressional and state senate maps to be used during this election cycle.'", 'Republicans have described the special-session redistricting push as part of a broader multistate battle for House control before the 2026 midterms. Democrats and civil-rights advocates have countered that the effort threatens Black voting power and revives gerrymandering fights across the South.']

Context

["The Supreme Court's decision in Louisiana v. Callais said race was used too heavily in drawing a second Black-majority district, narrowing prior interpretations of the Voting Rights Act and prompting multiple states to revisit maps mid-decade.", 'Former President Donald Trump publicly encouraged more states to redraw maps, arguing Republicans could gain additional House seats through the effort.', 'The Tennessee-Alabama fight is part of a larger national escalation rather than an isolated state dispute. Louisiana and Florida also moved quickly to revise congressional maps after the ruling.']

What's Next

['Tennessee lawmakers face a compressed timeline. Any changes must be enacted before the Aug. 6 primary, and candidate qualifying ended in March, leaving little room for procedural delays.', "Alabama's legislature is preparing for special congressional primaries, but that contingency depends on whether courts lift the injunction blocking the state's 2023 map in time for the 2026 election cycle.", 'Exact final district boundaries in both states have not been approved. The outcome in Tennessee and Alabama could affect the balance of the U.S. House in the 2026 midterms as Republicans push to expand the redistricting offensive across the South.']