Primary Confusion
GOP Gerrymandering Ploys Strike at the Heart of Democracy
It’s approaching that time in Alabama to vote in our primary elections. It’s particularly confusing this year, because of the anti-democratic ploys that GOP leaders in Alabama, along with other Southeast States, have contrived in the past weeks. Recently, the Supreme Court approved a GOP move in Alabama to revert the state back to an older 2023 congressional district map, which had already been ruled unconstitutional.
There are four districts in question: District 1 (Moore), District 2 (Figures), District 6 (Palmer), and District 7 (Sewell). The four central and south districts are being gerrymandered to solidify GOP minority rule. District 1’s representation is unlikely to change, because it will largely maintain enough traditionally conservative counties. Districts 2 and 7 (currently with Black representatives) will gain additional GOP parts of the state by diluting Black, and historically Democrat, votes. District 6 is tweaked to additionally diffuse the Black vote from Elmore county, solidifying it as a GOP stronghold. This shift will eliminate the ability for areas best served by Black representatives, especially District 2, to be fairly represented.
There are two tactics at play here. First, by calling back to the 2023 map, Governer Ivey and the GOP are sowing confusion among voters about what District they are in and if their votes matter at all. It’s true that there’s a real possibility that votes for the representatives in the primaries for these districts may not be counted. But they might.
Secondly, this confusion breeds discouragement and further suppresses the vote. Citizens who feel that they are not going to be represented or that their government doesn’t play fair are much less likely to vote, even though it matters. This can’t be stated enough: They try to suppress your vote because it matters.
This is the most nefarious aspect of this gerrymandering ploy. Even though there are new calls for federal courts to block reinstating the 2023 map, many voters may believe they should wait until upcoming August 11th special election to cast a ballot.
Do not wait until August to vote. First off, there’s more than just the primary on the ballot. Secondly, gerrymandering will rob people of their voice. Failing to vote in the primaries under the new map means that the GOP ploy worked. Cast a vote now because the current (new) map still matters.
Here are the upcoming dates you need to be aware of. We have four blocks of voting throughout the summer and fall coming up.
May 19 - Primary elections. PLEASE go and vote. There are local primaries, as well as two proposed amendments on the ballot. It’s important to participate Tuesday.
June 16 - Primary Runoff elections. These will be important for any race where no one candidate claims 50% of the primary vote.
August 11 - This is the where the new (old) congressional district votes will be considered. This is effectively an early general election for congressional seats, where winner takes all! There is a lot to do before we get to this election, but plan on voting.
November 3 - This is where all of our traditional primary winners will run in the general election.
We know things are confusing, and we know that our rights are being stripped. Voting is a cornerstone of democracy, and it is our duty to fulfill this step. You can learn more here. We aren’t stopping there. This weekend we’ve been fighting for democracy, and we’ll continue to do everything we can to protect our rights.
See you at the polls!