US President Donald Trump’s effort to redraw congressional districts ahead of the November elections suffered two setbacks on Tuesday: South Carolina senators rejected the proposal, and a federal court suspended the Republican-backed map in Alabama.
With the start of early in-person voting in the South Carolina primaries this Tuesday, the state Senate rejected a Republican plan to cancel the primary elections for Congress and call a new contest under redrawn districts, a measure that would favor the Republican Party.
The dispute in South Carolina is part of a Republican strategy, encouraged by Trump, to redraw electoral districts in favor of the party and preserve the narrow majority in the House in the midterm elections. The acronym has been advancing quickly following a recent ruling by the US Supreme Court that reduced protections for minorities under the Federal Voting Rights Act.
In Alabama, a three-judge federal panel issued a preliminary injunction that blocks the state from using a Republican-drawn congressional electoral map that could help the GOP win an additional seat. The court said the plan “intentionally discriminated on the basis of race” by including only one majority-black district and ordered continued use of a court-imposed map that includes two districts with a significant proportion of black residents.
Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall, a Republican, promised a quick appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court and predicted an eventual victory.
Republicans remain ahead in a national redistricting battle mid-decade. But Democrats, who have suffered setbacks of their own, praised the turnaround in Alabama.
