Georgia's Republican governor, Brian Kemp, has called a special legislative session for next month to redraw electoral maps, making the state the latest in the South to initiate map-making after the US Supreme Court's decision weakening the Voting Rights Act.
Special Session Details
Kemp announced the special session, set to begin on June 17, on Wednesday. The session will focus on "enacting, revising, repealing, or amending" district lines for the state legislature and congressional districts, in light of the Supreme Court's ruling in Louisiana v. Callais. Kemp, whose term ends in January, has stated that the state will not redraw boundaries for this year's elections, as primary elections are scheduled for next Tuesday. Instead, the redistricting special session aims to lock in Republican-leaning maps while the party still holds power in the legislature and governor's office.
Potential Impact on Representation
According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Republicans may seek to draw Democratic Representative Sanford Bishop, a Black congressman who has served since 1993, out of his seat. Other districts remain unclear and could risk a "dummymander," where an aggressive redraw backfires on the majority party. Democratic Senator Raphael Warnock of Georgia vowed to fight the new maps, stating on Twitter: "I will fight this with everything I have. There is an extreme movement in this country that will stop at nothing to hold on to power, even if it means stripping representation away from millions."
Supreme Court Ruling and Nationwide Reaction
The Supreme Court ruled in April that districts drawn by Louisiana in accordance with Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act—which prevents racial discrimination in voting—constituted an unconstitutional racial gerrymander. The decision effectively dilutes Black and minority voting power, marking a major upheaval in civil rights law. Immediately after the ruling, several states moved to redraw their maps. Louisiana set aside tens of thousands of already-cast ballots to eliminate a Black-majority district around Baton Rouge. Alabama gained Supreme Court approval to use a map previously deemed discriminatory against Black voters. Tennessee authorized new maps that eliminated the state's only Democratic, Black-majority congressional district.
However, South Carolina defied pressure from former President Donald Trump to redraw its maps, voting against a plan to do so. Virginia voters approved a ballot measure for more Democratic-leaning districts, but the state's Supreme Court threw out the map, leading to an appeal to the US Supreme Court.
Mid-Decade Redistricting Frenzy
The racial gerrymandering frenzy has intensified an already heated mid-decade redistricting race, meaning many voters will face new districts in this year's elections—a historic rarity outside of the decennial census redistricting. Redistricting typically occurs every 10 years after the US census. In some states, independent commissions oversee map-making, while in others, it is a highly partisan process. Starting last year, a wave of states pushed through new districts after Trump pressured Republican-led states to redraw maps to create House seats more favorable to their party, given expected GOP losses in the midterms. Some Democratic-led states have responded in kind.
Georgia's special legislative session will also address issues related to a new law banning QR codes on ballots, set to take effect in July.
