Bill Lee And Kay Ivey Call Special Sessions To Redraw Tennessee And Alabama House Maps

A new wave of redistricting pressure has surged across the United States after the Supreme Court’s decision “to weaken the Voting Rights Act,” prompting Republican governors and candidates to move quickly on congressional map changes.

“Which states might redraw congressional maps in 2026, 2028 after Supreme Court's Voting Rights Act ruling The ruling could result in states redistricting every few years”

ABC News

In Tennessee and Alabama, Republican governors called lawmakers into special sessions on Friday, with CBS News describing “the scramble across multiple southern states to redraw congressional maps” after the ruling.

ABC News

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee convened a special session that will start Tuesday, writing in a statement Friday that lawmakers “owe it to Tennesseans to ensure our congressional districts accurately reflect the will of Tennessee voters.”

Lee said any changes to Tennessee’s map “must be enacted as soon as possible,” and the state has primaries scheduled for Aug. 6 in this year’s congressional elections.

In Alabama, Gov. Kay Ivey called a special legislative session starting Monday to potentially schedule special primary elections if a new House map is implemented, saying she wants the state to be “prepared should the courts act quickly enough” for the House map to be changed in time for this year’s elections.

The Washington Post framed the moves as part of “a gerrymandering war unprecedented in modern times,” and it linked the rush to Republican efforts to “capitalize on the Supreme Court’sdecisionthis week to weaken the Voting Rights Act.”

The Washington Post also tied the timeline to Republican Gov. Jeff Landry’s Thursday announcement that he would suspend Louisiana’s May 16 U.S. House primaries so his state could redraw its map.

Alabama’s redistricting push is shaped by a federal court order and a history of litigation over its congressional districts, with multiple outlets describing how the Supreme Court’s new approach in Louisiana v. Callais could affect Alabama’s case.

CBS News said Alabama faces “years of litigation over its congressional districts,” noting that “The Supreme Court that Alabama's House map violated the Voting Rights Act” and that a three-judge panel “resulting in two House districts where Black voters make up a significant portion of the electorate, both held by Democrats.”

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Under a court injunction issued last year, CBS News reported that Alabama’s existing map is required to remain in place until after the 2030 Census, while state Attorney General Steve Marshall asked the Supreme Court on Thursday to vacate the lower court ruling that struck down lawmakers’ 2023 map.

CBS News also described the legal mechanism in Louisiana v. Callais, saying the Supreme Court in a 6-3 ruling “struck down a Louisiana map that includes two majority-Black House districts,” upholding a lower court ruling that found state lawmakers relied too heavily on race.

The Washington Examiner added that Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey issued a proclamation on Friday calling state lawmakers to hold a special legislative session reserved for redistricting next week and to reschedule the May 19 primary election, and it quoted Ivey saying, “During this special session, I have called on the Legislature to address legislation to provide for a special primary election for electing members of the U.S. House of Representatives and the Alabama State Senate in districts whose boundary lines are altered by court action.”

The Washington Examiner also said Alabama is “currently under a federal court order banning the use of new congressional maps through mid-decade redistricting until after the 2030 census,” while Ivey said she is hopeful that Louisiana v. Callais will bode well for the state’s case.

Politico further described the internal pressure on Alabama Republicans, noting that Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey “rejected calls from within her party to call a special session on Wednesday,” citing a separate court ruling that prevents the state from redrawing its maps until 2030.

President Donald Trump’s public push is repeatedly cited as a catalyst for the Tennessee and Louisiana timeline, and it is also described as part of a broader Republican strategy to capitalize on the Supreme Court’s shift.

CBS News reported that “President Trump has strongly urged Lee to redraw the state's map to give Republicans

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