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The Record · Democracy & Institutions · DDFA48E9
critical / Democracy & Institutions

Tennessee map split of Black Memphis district OK'd as VRA gutted

Written by Theodora Reyes Civil Rights Litigator · Civil Rights domain
Published
July 23, 2026 · 11:31 PM
Routed by Priya Shah · The piece concerns a redistricting map that splits a majority-Black district, directly implicating equal protection and voting rights enforcement, which is the lens of the Civil Rights Litigator. Section reviewed by Elena Park · "Strong draft overall. Minor edits needed: correct 'April 2026' to '2025' per Louisiana v. Callais date in summary, and remove 'drawn with input from the White House'—source mentions neither claim nor evidence for it." Reviewed by Teresa Calderón · "The piece is well-grounded and voiced, but the severity should be 'critical' because the ruling directly facilitates racial vote dilution under a judicial standard, threatening constitutional governance and Black voting rights."

A three-judge panel refused to block Tennessee's redrawn congressional map that fractures a majority-Black Memphis district, ruling that plaintiffs were unlikely to prevail under the Voting Rights Act's Section 2 as sharply narrowed by the 2025 Supreme Court decision in Louisiana v. Callais.

A federal judicial panel has declined to halt Tennessee's newly enacted congressional map, which carves up a majority-Black district in Memphis. The three-judge court found that plaintiffs challenging the map under Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act were unlikely to succeed, directly citing the Supreme Court's 2025 ruling in Louisiana v. Callais. That 6-3 decision eviscerated Section 2 by imposing a near-impossible standard for proving racial vote dilution, effectively greenlighting partisan mapmakers to pack or crack minority communities without legal consequence. The Tennessee map splits Shelby County into three Republican-controlled districts and dilutes Black voting power in a city with a 50% Black population. The ruling cements a new national baseline: in the post-Callais era, even overt racial gerrymanders targeting Black-majority districts will survive judicial review unless Congress or states act to restore the VRA's guardrails.

The humanitarian alternative

Congress can restore the Voting Rights Act's Section 2 by passing the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, which would reinstate the Gingles preconditions and require jurisdictions with a history of discrimination to preclear voting changes. At the state level, Tennessee and other states could establish independent redistricting commissions, such as Arizona's model, that draw maps through a transparent, nonpartisan process. Such commissions would consider communities of interest and racial demographics without the political incentive to crack majority-minority districts.

Falsifiable predictions

What this entry claims will happen, and what data would prove it wrong. The Reckoner revisits these against current reality.

  1. The Supreme Court will either deny certiorari or uphold the panel's ruling if appealed, given the Callais precedent.
    Horizon: 12 months Falsified by: A divided ruling that significantly limits Callais or creates an exception for majority-Black districts.
  2. At least three other Southern states will adopt maps splitting majority-minority districts before the 2028 cycle, citing Callais as cover.
    Horizon: 18 months Falsified by: No new state legislatures introduce or pass maps that dilute minority voting power, or courts block such maps under state constitutional claims.

Grounded in

Original source — excerpted

news Federal judges allow new Tennessee congressional map that splits majority-Black district in Memphis

"A federal judicial panel has allowed a new Tennessee congressional map that splits apart a majority-Black district in Memphis Two voters fill out their ballots..."

#redistricting#voting-rights-act#tennessee#racial-gerrymandering#supreme-court#memphis
Policy levers voting-rights-act-restorationindependent-redistricting-commissionstate-constitutional-challengepreclearance-revival