Like much of the South, Georgia has a long history of rewriting the rules when Black communities make political advancements. Ever since Reconstruction, gerrymandering has been one of the tools that political leaders have used to fight back against those advancements — Georgia’s current congressional and state legislative maps are the latest version of this generations-old story.

Thankfully, Judge Steve C. Jones of the Northern District of Georgia stepped in last month and ordered the drawing of new maps that would provide fairer representation for Georgia’s Black voters. Like recent decisions in Alabama, his decision is a victory for democracy and fairness in the South, and it now falls on the Georgia General Assembly to comply with the court’s order.

The court’s ruling makes it clear — the General Assembly must enter into a fair and transparent redistricting process that gives Black voters in Georgia more opportunity to elect candidates of their choosing.

Good news for the General Assembly: fairness is the simple part. The court’s ruling provides a clear path to bringing the maps into alignment with the Voting Rights Act. Plaintiffs in the case presented a map that would provide a solid framework for redistricting — a map supported by nonpartisan experts and endorsed as a good starting point by the court.

Whatever map the Assembly draws must comply with the court order without any attempts at subversion. Black voters in Georgia are now legally entitled to an additional majority-Black congressional district in the western metro Atlanta area, as well as two state Senate districts in south-metro Atlanta and five state House districts throughout the state — three districts throughout metro Atlanta and two districts around Macon-Bibb.

Transparency is the harder part. It could be tempting for legislators to handle much of this process behind closed doors, but previous attempts at gerrymandering have damaged the public’s trust in their methods. To help restore that trust, public input must be a priority. This means holding public hearings on proposed maps, allowing for public input on the maps, and providing ample notice on all activities, including committee meetings, hearings, and floor votes on redistricting bills. Shining as much light on the process as possible is step one to restoring trust in Georgia’s democracy.

That democracy can only thrive when every voice is heard and every vote counts, and it’s up to all of us to uphold that democracy by making sure all communities have access to equal representation. We can do that by holding our elected officials accountable for their actions.

I call on Georgians to let their legislators know that we won’t tolerate any attempts to run an end-around on the court’s ruling. Voters should choose their elected officials — not the other way around.


Joey McKinnon
Director, Georgia Values Action
Atlanta, GA