A couple of years ago, Democratic Party legal groups found a sympathetic federal panel in the Northern District of Alabama, and that court created a new minority Democratic Congressional District. That district came into existence a little over a year ago.
The Constitution grants the power to draw and determine Congressional and Legislative districts to legislatures in each state. Our duly elected Alabama Legislature had created, for several decades, districts that yielded six Republicans and one Democrat.
Using the auspices of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, the federal court ruled, and then drew new maps that led to a new Congressional Democratic district. That seat is now held by Mobile Democrat Shomari Figures. Our delegation now has five Republicans and two Democrats.
Having had success with congressional realignment, these same Democratic legal groups focused on the Alabama State Senate. Again, they were successful with the same Federal Judge, however, with a limited focus. The Court zeroed in on the Montgomery River Region. This Republican district of Senator Will Barfoot was comprised of the white areas of east Montgomery, Pike Road, along with Crenshaw and Elmore counties. After the interventionist decision by the same Federal Judge that changed Alabama’s Congressional lines, the jurist commenced, again, to redraw the lines.
The court dissolved the Barfoot Senate District 25 and created a new Democratic Montgomery-based State Senate district, combining the former River Region district with areas where there was burgeoning growth of the black population of Montgomery. Currently, the area has two very competent, diligent, and popular State Senators. However, the drafter made Democrat Hatcher’s District 26 a winnable Republican district and made Barfoot’s District 25 a very likely Democratic district.
After a month or so of mulling over the new lines, Barfoot and Hatcher, who get along well together and work well together representing Montgomery, said, “why don’t we just swap Senate district numbers?”
Senator Will Barfoot initiated the maneuver. He studied it and ran it by several folks and political powers, and everybody told him, “That dog will hunt.” When Hatcher contemplated the plan, the amicable, pragmatic Democrat had no problem changing his Senate district number from 26 to 25. Afterall, the ruling had moved most of his constituents to the new District 25 anyway. Furthermore, these voters do not care what the district number is, they just know Hatcher is who they want as their State Senator.
Senator Will Barfoot made one of the boldest and shrewdest moves seen in Alabama politics in a long time. Barfoot outwitted the Federal Judge and turned the tables on her, saving a Republican Seat in the State Senate and in turn, saving and preserving Hatcher’s familiar Democratic district. Barfoot and Hatcher did what you call “making lemonade out of lemons.” The people of that area will have continuity and selfless public servants with Hatcher and Barfoot representing them in the Alabama State Senate.
Senator Barfoot’s statement in announcing the changing of State Senate numbers was one of the most succinct and accurate summations I have ever seen or heard. Barfoot, the Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said he is running for reelection to the Senate from Seat 25 to Seat 26 because the Court ruling “makes no sense.”
Barfoot went on to add, “I cannot allow one of the most conservative counties in Alabama – Elmore County – to be denied the conservative representation it deserves simply because Federal Courts issued a badly flawed ruling. Allowing a Democrat to represent Elmore County in the Alabama State Senate would be like Bernie Sanders representing Alabama in the U.S. Senate and casting liberal votes that do not reflect the views of the citizens they swore an oath to serve.
When that happens, grassroots voices are silenced, and conservative views are ignored. I’m running in District 26 to ensure that conservative Republicans in Elmore County and throughout the area are represented by a conservative Trump Republican and not a woke liberal Democrat who fights against everything they believe and embrace.”
The new district lines that were dictated from the Federal Judge were drawn by an untrained 18-year-old college freshman Democrat, who used an online app and submitted the map to the Courts for consideration.
This novice mistake allowed Will Barfoot and Kirk Hatcher outsmarted the Federal Courts and made lemonade out of lemons.
See you next week.
Steve Flowers is Alabama’s leading political columnist. His weekly column appears in over 60 Alabama newspapers. He served 16 years in the state legislature. Steve may be reached at [email protected].
