Democrats won two states on the same day, in South Carolina and Alabama, gaining a small but necessary position in the nationwide redistricting battle that will continue into the fall.
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South Carolina’s Republican-controlled Senate rebelled against President Donald Trump and on May 26 rejected an effort to draw new congressional districts before the midterm elections.
The Democratic victory in the Palmetto State marked one of two small but necessary victories on the same day for the National Party, which has lost significant ground in recent weeks in the redistricting battles engulfing the nation heading into November.
Congressional Democrats in Washington remain bullish that they will take back the House in the fall, but they have been significantly set back by a series of damning court decisions that have left them unable to gerrymander states on par with Republicans.
Fueled by President Trump and a conservative-dominated Supreme Court, partisan map-making is spreading like wildfire as both parties in Congress aim to grow and gain a deeper foothold in the House.
The Republican push in South Carolina would have targeted the seat held by Rep. James Clyburn, the only Democrat in the state’s federal delegation.
The South Carolina House of Representatives passed a redistricting bill last week, but the state Senate delayed it until May 26, when early voting begins in the state. By a vote of 26-18, the Legislature decided to suspend redistricting debate until the next session.
Republican state Sen. Richard Cash had previously voted in favor of redistricting, but said the deadline to submit new congressional maps had passed once early voting began. According to the South Carolina State Board of Elections, as of 1 p.m. on May 26, more than 32,000 people had already cast early votes.
“It’s time to conclude this matter,” he said.
Republican Rep. Nancy Mace, who is running for governor, wasn’t happy with the political provocation.
“The South Carolina Senate needs to finish the job,” she wrote on social media.
SC Democratic Party gets victory lap
South Carolina Senate Minority Leader Brad Hutto, a Democrat, said the result was proof that “rules matter.” Carl Allen, the other Democrat in the state Assembly, praised Republicans for acting across party lines.
“We want to create a South Carolina that includes all of the best interests of all South Carolinians,” Allen said.
The South Carolina Senate will now adjourn until June 10, when it will reconvene to continue considering the budget and other legislation. In that case, lawmakers could continue to discuss redistricting.
Redistricting war intensifies
On the same day as the South Carolina Senate vote, Democrats also gained some support in Alabama. A federal court in the state has blocked the state’s Republican Party from eliminating a majority-black district and a safe Democratic seat. In this case, an appeal is likely. The Alabama ruling marks a new twist in the national redistricting saga.
But not all states have shown a willingness to flip their electoral maps, as the latest move in South Carolina shows.
Last year, the Indiana Senate similarly rejected President Trump’s request for redistricting to increase Republican-leaning seats in December. Enraged by the backlash from local Republicans in the Hoosier state, the president responded by endorsing candidates in the primaries that ultimately ousted five incumbents this year.
