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Flooding Halts Alabama Session After Lawmakers Advance Redistricting Backup Bills

The bills set backup rules to keep elections on schedule if courts order late map changes.

Overview

  • Alabama’s special session on redistricting, which stretched into Wednesday during a tornado warning, saw the House pass HB1 and the Senate pass SB1 just before alarms forced an evacuation.
  • A National Weather Service alert for Montgomery County preceded flooding in the State House that triggered fire alarms and left vehicles stranded in high water.
  • SB1 keeps already-qualified candidates on the ballot and calls a special primary for affected state Senate districts if a federal court changes maps too late for the usual calendar.
  • HB1 applies the same contingency to congressional districts so the November general election can stay on time even if new maps arrive late.
  • Attorney General Steve Marshall filed emergency motions seeking court approval of new congressional and state Senate maps as Democrats warned the plans could dilute Black voting power.