NAACP files emergency petition to block Tennessee’s newly approved redistricting plan
The group says the map was drawn outside the census cycle and could confuse voters and election officials ahead of the 2026 primaries.
- On Thursday, the NAACP Tennessee State Conference filed an emergency petition in Davidson County Chancery Court to block Tennessee's newly signed congressional map. Governor Bill Lee signed the plan into law following a special legislative session.
- Challenging the mid-decade redistricting, the NAACP argues Tennessee law prohibits changing congressional districts between census apportionments, which occur every 10 years. The new map redraws Shelby County, home to Memphis, into three Republican-controlled districts.
- Asserting that lawmakers exceeded the authority outlined in Lee's special session proclamation, the lawsuit also challenges legislation suspending residency requirements for congressional candidates. The group claims this action creates confusion for voters and strains election officials.
- Tennessee Secretary of State Tre Hargett announced Thursday that revised maps are now in effect, opening a special qualifying period for congressional candidates through May 15. The NAACP seeks to declare the maps invalid.
- Following a U.S. Supreme Court ruling last week that weakened Voting Rights Act protections, Tennessee is the first state to pass new districts. Republicans estimate they could gain 14 seats, while Democrats anticipate up to 10.
19 Articles
19 Articles
NAACP: Alito gave lawmakers 'playbook' to gerrymander
After Tennessee Republicans passed a new congressional map that broke up the state's only majority-Black district, NAACP General Counsel Kristen Clarke says the justification given by Tennessee lawmakers for the redistricting "lacks credibility."
Legal Challenges Begin as Tennessee Redraws Sole Democratic District
Tennessee’s chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) filed suit, and others hinted at further legal challenges, on May 7 over Tennessee’s newly enacted congressional map, which redraws Memphis into three districts and ends what had been the state’s only majority-black and its only Democratic-held congressional seat. U.S. Rep Steve Cohen, the lone Democrat in Tennessee’s congressional delegation, also allu…
NAACP Seeks Emergency Block of Tennessee GOP Redistricting Plan
Nashville, Tennessee — The NAACP filed an emergency court petition Thursday seeking to block Tennessee’s newly approved congressional redistricting map, arguing the Republican-backed plan unlawfully dismantles the state’s only majority-Black congressional district. The lawsuit, filed in Davidson County Chancery Court, asks the court to prevent Gov. Bill Lee and Tennessee officials from implementing the newly enacted map. The redistricting plan d…
NAACP files emergency petition to block Tennessee’s newly approved redistricting plan
The NAACP on Thursday filed an emergency petition to block Tennessee’s attempt to remove the only majority Black congressional district in the state, which the organization argues violates the state constitution. Filed in Davidson County Chancery Court, the emergency petition urged Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee (R) and the state legislature to not enact the new…
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