Georgia has "made great strides since 1965 towards equality in voting," the judge wrote, referring to the year the Voting Rights Act was enacted to ensure Black voter power was not diluted through racially gerrymandered congressional and state legislative maps.
Once the maps are drawn, litigants can still sue under the Voting Rights Act to demand the drawing of districts that are not designed to dilute minority voting power.
The state is expected to appeal, but in a similar case in Alabama, the high court ruled for voting rights activists.
"I applaud the district court's decision ordering Georgia to draw maps compliant with the Voting Rights Act," Georgia state Senate Minority Leader Gloria Butler, a Democrat, said in a statement responding to the ruling.
A similar case is going on in Louisiana, which was also ordered to draw another majority-Black district.
Persons:
Steve Jones, Georgia –, Mike Johnson, Joe Biden, Donald Trump, Jones, – Raphael Warnock, Jon Ossoff –, Holder, Gloria Butler
Organizations:
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Locations:
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