On May 26, a three-judge U.S. District Court panel enjoined use of the Alabama redistricting plan that the legislature passed earlier this month. Singleton v Allen, combined with Milligan v Allen, n.d., 2:21cv-1291. The decision is 102 pages and is by U.S. Court of Appeals judge Stanley Marcus, a Clinton appointee. It is also signed by U.S. District Court Judges Anna Manasco and Terry Moorer, both Trump appointees.
The order keeps the special primary set for August 11 in place, for the First, Second, Sixth and Seventh districts. That means the deadline for independent and minor party petitions will also be August 11. The order does not address the number of signatures that will be required. It says, “We expressly leave to the State’s discretion (as we must) how it addresses candidate qualification.”
The order is based on the same court’s finding several years ago that the 2023 redistricting plan, which was mirrored in this month’s plan, intentionally discriminated against Black voters and was not drawn for partisan reasons.
It will be interesting to see if the state now appeals to the U.S. Supreme Court. In the meantime, the uncertainty over the district boundaries makes a very strong case that the number of signatures, normally approximately 6,000 per district, should be reduced due to the limited time for anyone to complete a petition.
