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Brief May 9, 2026 · 12:02 am ET Source: The Hill

Alabama Bets the Courts Will Hand It Shomari Figures's Seat

Alabama Republicans passed legislation Friday authorizing the governor to scrap the May 19 primary schedule and call new special elections — but only if the Supreme Court first lifts the injunction locking the state's current map in place through 2030. The maneuver is conditional on a court reversal that isn't guaranteed, but the bet is live: Alabama simultaneously filed an emergency petition asking the Supreme Court to green-light the GOP's 2023 map, which federal courts had previously rejected. The 2023 map would eliminate the majority-Black second district that produced Rep. Shomari Figures's (D) 2024 victory. The play here is straightforward: the Court's Louisiana ruling last week — striking a majority-Black district as an unconstitutional racial gerrymander — handed Republicans a legal theory. Tennessee moved the same day, carving up its only majority-Black district. Alabama is running the same playbook. If the Court bites, Figures is the target and the House majority gets a little more cushion.