US House Redistricting: Alabama

[Sam Spade]

On an aside... just read the profile of the new Congresswoman for AL-07. She is ridiculously impressive. Too bad she's in Alabama, so she'll never be anything more than a Representative unless she gets appointed to something (or runs for President, but I'm not convinced any Representative could leap straight from the House to a Presidential nomination these days).

She was at Princeton at the same time as Michelle Obama, it looks like.

Funny thing is that Artur Davis has just as impressive of a resume.  Wish her the best, though, she seems like a very intelligent woman.

[Sam Spade]

The Alabama map with updated census figures.

Not much to say; the urban Birmingham districts contract a bit and the rural southern ones expand a bit.

By VAP CD-7 is 64.8% black. CD-1 is 24.5%, CD-2 is 28.1%. The rest are in the teens.

One could accuse that map of packing the blacks in CD-7. I did the following map back in '09 with estimates, but a quick check of the 2010 data shows that basic idea still works. With 2010 data one can make CD-2 51.4% black VAP and CD-7 53.5% black.

I'm sure they could, but I doubt they get anywhere. I would expect the Alabama redistricters to draw this kind of map I made.

It goes to my same argument I made yesterday on the LA thread. An aggressive DoJ could try to challenge mapmakers in R-controlled states by demanding better minority representation. AL is 26% black, and 2/7 is 28.5% so two districts is in better proportion to the state's black population than one district.

If they want the fight, then they'll get it.  One would think they would choose better cases, given prior precedent. 

Also, one wonders how happy the blacks will be down there.