California and Illinois should restrict their congressional maps to get all Democrat representation in California and Illinois, according to U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell (D-Birmingham).
A 6-3 majority of the U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) found the use of race-based redistricting to be unconstitutional in a Louisiana case on Wednesday. The ruling will likely have major implications for Alabama's congressional map. SCOTUS could rule on Alabama-specific redistricting cases next week.
After the ruling, Sewell told POLITICO she wanted California and Illinois to redraw their maps to eliminate all Republican representation in those states. Ivey declined to call a special session on redistricting "at this time" on Wednesday. Sewell's district would likely be redrawn into a likely Republican district if Ivey were to change course and call a special session on redistricting.
"I take 52 seats from California, and 17 seats from Illinois, because at the end of the day, they're rigging this election to try to win. And we just can't sit back here and do nothing. We're going to play their game, and we're going to beat them at it," Sewell told POLITICO on Wednesday.
California has seven members of Congress who are Republicans. Illinois has three Republican members.
Legislators approved a new Alabama congressional map in 2023. A special master hired by a three-judge panel in Birmingham redrew the map for the 2024 congressional elections after Democrats and liberal groups were successful in their initial legal challenge. The issue is still being litigated. The new map resulted in Democrats picking up one seat in Alabama, Congressional District 2, with U.S. Rep. Shomari Figures (D-Mobile) in 2024. Five of the seven congressional seats are now held by Republicans.
U.S. Circuit Judge Stanley Marcus, U.S. District Judge Anna Manasco and U.S. District Judge Terry Moorer ruled the 2023 plan violated Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act and the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Some have called for Alabama to redraw its map to include seven likely Republican congressional districts after the SCOTUS ruling on Wednesday.
In August, a federal court barred Alabama from redrawing its current, court-ordered congressional map again until 2030. Some have speculated a related order from SCOTUS on Alabama's redistricting case could come as early as Monday.
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