Trending Now - Southern GOP Moves Forward With Controversial Redistricting Efforts
WHO:
AP News - Republican state Sen. John Stevens stated, “Tennessee is a conservative state, and our congressional delegation should reflect that. This bill ensures it does.”
AP News - Democratic state Rep. Spencer Wetmore criticized the redistricting effort, saying, “Daddy Trump calls and needs to grasp at some power, and once again we jump.”
WPLN News - Rep. Justin J. Pearson, D-Memphis, and Equity Alliance CEO Tequila Johnson led a march at the Tennessee Capitol.
WPLN News - Democratic U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen, opponent of Pearson in the District 9 primary, expressed opposition to new maps.
AP News - Republicans in several Southern states, including Tennessee, Alabama, and South Carolina, are involved in redistricting efforts.
AP News - Democratic U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn has represented South Carolina’s 6th Congressional District since it was redrawn in 1992.
AP News - Republican state Sen. John Stevens is spearheading the redistricting legislation in Tennessee.
AP News - Sekou Franklin, a political science professor at Middle Tennessee State University and part of the Tennessee branch of the NAACP, criticized the redistricting efforts.
AP News - State Rep. Adline Clarke, a Democrat from Mobile, spoke against Alabama's redistricting proposal.
AP News - Democratic state Rep. Spencer Wetmore criticized the redistricting efforts in South Carolina.
WHAT:
AP News - The proposed U.S. House map in Tennessee would split Memphis’ Shelby County into three districts instead of the current two.
AP News - The candidate qualifying period in Tennessee will be reopened to allow new candidates to join the races and existing candidates to switch districts.
WPLN News - Hundreds of protesters gathered at the Tennessee Capitol as lawmakers began a special session to consider redistricting.
WPLN News - Tennessee's Republican supermajority is responding to a call from Trump to increase GOP seats in Congress.
WPLN News - The special session for redistricting is expected to last only three days.
AP News - Southern Republicans are pressing ahead with redistricting efforts despite protests and objections.
AP News - The Supreme Court ruled that Louisiana relied too heavily on race when creating a second Black-majority House district.
AP News - Tennessee Republicans proposed a new U.S. House map that would split Memphis’ Shelby County into three districts.
AP News - Alabama is debating legislation to enable special congressional primaries if courts allow a switch in U.S. House maps.
AP News - The primary election in Tennessee is scheduled for August 6.
AP News - Alabama's primaries are scheduled for May 19.
WHERE:
WPLN News - The protest took place at the Tennessee Capitol.
AP News - The redistricting efforts are taking place in Southern states, specifically Tennessee, Alabama, and South Carolina.
AP News - The Tennessee Senate committee hearing was interrupted by protesters in Nashville, Tennessee.
AP News - South Carolina's 6th Congressional District is mentioned as being represented by Jim Clyburn.
WHEN:
AP News - South Carolina's primaries are scheduled for June 9, with early voting starting in three weeks.
WPLN News - Hearings on the new maps are scheduled to begin the following morning.
AP News - The candidate qualifying period in Tennessee ended in March.
AP News - The state Supreme Court in April 2022 rejected a challenge to the current congressional map in Tennessee.
AP News - The resolution in South Carolina requires a two-thirds vote to pass, with Republicans holding a supermajority.
AP News - Early voting for South Carolina's primaries starts in three weeks.
WHY:
AP News - The redistricting efforts are motivated by a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that altered the understanding of the Voting Rights Act, allowing Republicans to attempt to eliminate majority-Black districts.
WPLN News - The last-minute redistricting effort was prompted by a U.S. Supreme Court case that removed protections for majority-Black districts like Memphis.
AP News - The redistricting efforts are motivated by a Supreme Court ruling that altered the understanding of the Voting Rights Act, allowing Republicans to attempt to eliminate majority-Black districts.
AP News - The stakes are high for minority voters who may lose their preferred representatives due to the redistricting.
HOW:
AP News - Alabama's proposal for special congressional primaries hinges on the U.S. Supreme Court or a federal district court agreeing to lift a federal court injunction regarding Black-majority districts.
WPLN News - Republican leadership in Tennessee is moving to repeal a 50-year-old state law that prohibits mid-decade redistricting.
AP News - Tennessee lawmakers are seeking to repeal a state law prohibiting mid-decade redistricting to adopt new House districts.
AP News - Alabama's proposal hinges on the U.S. Supreme Court or a federal district court agreeing to lift a federal court injunction regarding Black-majority districts.
(UPDATED May 6, 2026 23:15 UTC)
Tennessee's proposed U.S. House map aims to split Memphis' Shelby County into three districts instead of the current two, a move supported by Republican state Sen. John Stevens, who believes the congressional delegation should reflect the conservative nature of the state. However, Democratic state Rep. Spencer Wetmore criticized the redistricting effort, suggesting it caters to Trump's influence. Meanwhile, South Carolina's primaries are set for June 9, with early voting beginning in three weeks, as Alabama awaits a decision from the U.S. Supreme Court regarding special congressional primaries and Black-majority districts.
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(UPDATED May 6, 2026 21:19 UTC)
Hundreds of protesters gathered at the Tennessee Capitol as lawmakers kicked off a special session to consider redistricting, led by Rep. Justin J. Pearson and Equity Alliance CEO Tequila Johnson. This session, which is expected to last just three days, comes in response to a call from Trump to increase GOP seats in Congress, and hearings on the new maps are set to begin the following morning. The urgency of this last-minute redistricting effort stems from a recent U.S. Supreme Court case that eliminated protections for majority-Black districts like Memphis, prompting Republican leadership to seek the repeal of a 50-year-old state law against mid-decade redistricting.
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(UPDATED May 6, 2026 19:25 UTC)
Republicans in several Southern states, including Tennessee, Alabama, and South Carolina, are advancing redistricting efforts despite facing significant protests and objections. In Tennessee, lawmakers are pushing to repeal a state law that currently prohibits mid-decade redistricting, while Alabama is debating legislation for special congressional primaries, contingent on court decisions regarding U.S. House maps. The stakes are particularly high for minority voters, as these redistricting moves could potentially eliminate majority-Black districts and impact their representation.